A Krogan Holiday
by atoz
Summary: Love really hurts when the Normandy crew visits Tuchanka for a krogan mating festival and meets an asari Spectre with an eerily similar crew.
1. Chapter 1

A KROGAN HOLIDAY

Summary: Love really hurts when the Normandy crew visits Tuchanka for a krogan mating festival and meets an asari Spectre with an eerily similar crew. [A Mass Effect 2 fanfic]

Chapter 1

Invitation

"You have a new message on your private terminal, Commander."

Shepard accessed the terminal and opened a message ambiguously titled "Shepard." It read:

There's a festival happening on Tuchanka tomorrow. It's an ancient krogan tradition for a holiday that I've decided to bring back. Urdnot Grunt should come if he can. You're his battlemaster, so you can come too, and so can the rest of your crew. Not like you're busy.

-Wrex.

Shepard sighed and closed the message. Since picking up Legion her crew had had very little to do except stress in anticipation of the suicide mission; a krogan holiday might be the perfect thing to calm them down. But once the Reaper IFF was installed, Shepard wanted to gather up the last necessary supplies and head straight to the Omega 4 Relay. Every moment they delayed could put more colonists in danger.

It would be better for her just to continue what she was doing—scanning planets and making last-minute upgrades. And chatting with the crew, of course.

* * *

><p>Kasumi Goto was startled when she heard the sound of her door opening. She turned off her interface and stood up.<p>

"Shepard," she said. "Is there a problem?"

"No problems. Just dropping by for a quick drink. And it's been a while since I've visited."

"True. You can come in, if you like."

Kasumi gestured for her to enter. Shepard walked up to the bar and poured herself a couple shots from the red container. Then she turned to look at Kasumi, who was holding her interface in her hand. "Spending some time with Keiji?"

Kasumi smiled vaguely; Shepard couldn't tell if the question pleased her or offended her. "As usual." Kasumi was friendly and likeable, but she spent nearly all of her time in her room with the graybox that contained her dead lover's memories.

Shepard walked casually over to her, remarking, in a low voice, "I suppose I thought you would have given up by now."

Kasumi's smile vanished. "Why do you say that?"

Shepard shrugged. "It's been over a week. Aren't you tired of reliving the same old memories?"

"No. The memories are all I have left of Keiji now…and I will never be tired of him."

"I understand that after he died you were obsessed with getting his graybox, but now that you've accomplished that…don't you think it's time to move on?"

Kasumi stood and walked over to the window, facing away from Shepard. "I appreciate you offering advice," she said, her tone decidedly unappreciative, "but this is my choice."

"But maybe years from now you'll destroy the graybox, and you'll look back on this and wish you had buried those memories sooner."

"Respectfully, Commander Shepard, you don't know how close I was to Keiji…how close I still am to him."

There was a pause; Shepard asked quietly, "Do you think he would have done the same for you?"

"What?" Kasumi asked, surprised by the question.

"If he thought you were dead…"

"Thought I was dead?"

"If you _were_ dead," Shepard corrected quickly. "If you had died, and…and it had been _years_…would he have held on to those memories?"

Kasumi cocked her head to one side. "Did you lose someone? Or, should I say…did someone lose you?"

Shepard's face hardened. "He wouldn't have waited for you," she said bitterly. "He might have kept your graybox, might have glanced at it occasionally, but a couple months later it would have been shoved in a desk compartment somewhere, and a couple months after that it would have been collecting dust while he started seeing some cute French doctor on the Citadel."

"Are you all right?"

Shepard smiled wryly. "I'm fine, I'm not being serious," she said; Kasumi couldn't tell if this was true. "In fact, I think the graybox is a nice idea. I just don't think I would care much for reliving the past."

"Then why did you…"

"I have some things to take care of. It was nice talking to you, Kasumi."

Kasumi frowned as Shepard left the room. _The stress of the mission must be getting to her_, she thought, lifting the graybox interface; then she hesitated, looking back at the door.

A few seconds passed; then, Kasumi placed the graybox in a desk drawer, and opened a book to read instead.

* * *

><p>"Donnelly?"<p>

"What?"

Tali walked over to where Kenneth Donnelly and Gabriella Daniels always stood. "I need you to go down and find a crate marked with this ID code and bring it up here." She handed him a datapad.

"D-down?" Ken repeated, frowning.

"Yes. Down the stairs."

"Oh! The…the stairs. But…why?"

"I told you, I need some supplies from that crate."

"Why can't you go down there?"

Tali folded her arms. "If you haven't noticed, I've been working all day on the _Normandy_'s shield upgrades. You didn't seem very busy, so I thought you might be willing to help."

"Why not Gabby?"

"Kenneth!" Gabby hissed, poking him in the back.

"If you're that afraid of Jack I'll just do it myself," Tali said, reaching for the datapad; Ken pulled it toward himself.

"Wait a minute," he said quickly. "Nobody said anything about being afraid of Jack. I just don't like being asked to carry boxes around. Now, I know that I'm the only man in engineering, but that doesn't mean you can make me do all the manual labor around here. If you…"

"You _are_ just afraid of Jack, aren't you?" Gabby asked.

"Just give it back," Tali said impatiently.

"No," Ken said. "I'll do it for you, but just this once."

"Bring it up when you've found it," Tali said, sighing and walking over to the mass effect drive.

"Kenneth, you idiot!" Gabby whispered through gritted teeth. "She's like a superior officer! What if she tells Commander Shepard that you're insubordinate?"

"Commander Shepard would have gotten the damn box herself," Ken said.

"You're making such a big deal out of this! Look, just go get it right now, or I'm going to do it."

"I'll do it, I'll do it." Ken started walking away; then he stopped and turned. "Gabby?"

"Yeah?"

"If Jack kills me, I just want you to know…I've always loved you."

"You will never grow up, will you?"

Ken chuckled to himself as he went through the door and down the stairs to Jack's lair.

"What's so funny?"

Ken's smile vanished as Jack emerged from a shadow, hands on her hips. "N-nothing," he stammered quickly.

"What are you holding?"

"Tali sent me to find a crate."

Jack snatched the datapad and tossed it on the ground. "I think that might take a little while."

"Jack, please…Gabby's up there waiting for me…so far she hasn't suspected anything, but…"

"Shut up and take off your clothes."

"But if she…"

"Didn't you hear me?" Jack snarled.

Ken sighed. "All right…"

Meanwhile, Gabby was indeed waiting for Ken. When he seemed to be taking longer than needed, she started to grow concerned, but then figured he was probably doing it on purpose to scare her. She managed to distract herself with her work until Tali walked over. "Did he go get the crate?"

"Yeah, but he hasn't come back yet. I think he's messing with me. He wants me to go down there looking for him."

"I'm sorry I ever asked," Tali mumbled.

"He's really not so bad," Gabby said quickly. "I mean…he just…you know…he…" she sighed. "Please don't tell the commander."

"I wasn't planning to. But I need that box, and if he doesn't…"

"I'll go get him, ma'am. I'm really sorry."

"Daniels…you and Donnelly do good work down here. You're great engineers, both of you."

"Thanks," Gabby said with a smile.

"Now I really need those supplies."

"On it."

Tali waited at her work station and Gabby went to the staircase leading to the sub-deck. She was about to call out Ken's name when she heard voices: Jack's and Ken's.

"Now get lost," Jack was saying.

"You could be a wee bit nicer to me, you know," Ken said angrily. "It wouldn't hurt."

"You know what _would_ hurt? Being thrown into a wall by my biotics. Now I told you to get lost."

"All right, all right! And maybe I just won't come back!"

"Fine by me. I'll just find someone else to fuck. Maybe he'll be less of a weakling."

Gabby's face reddened and she covered her mouth. She could hear Ken walking to the other side of the sub-level; he would be going up the other stairs.

Gabby quickly hurried back to her post, where Tali was still waiting. "Is he coming?" she asked.

Gabby tried to speak, but she choked on her words and looked away.

"Daniels?" Tali said, concerned.

"Here you are!" Ken said, strolling over with the crate under his arm.

"What took you so long?" Tali asked, turning to him.

"Oh, Jack gave me a hard time of it. I'm lucky I made it out of there in one piece."

"Excuse me, I…I have to go," Gabby said suddenly; her face still obscured, she hurried away from the post.

"What's wrong with her?" Ken asked, frowning.

Tali shrugged. "She went down to see what was taking you so long, and…"

Ken's eyes widened; he dropped the crate and bolted after her.

He reached the elevator just as the doors were closing; Ken thrust his arm in and managed to get them to open again just in time for him to slip in. Then he pressed the stop button and faced her. "Gabby, listen, I can explain…"

Gabby's face instantly contorted with anger. "How _could_ you, Kenneth? I've been friends with you for _how_ many years now, and you do something like that…"

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you! I…I was going to…"

"When exactly were you planning to tell me? And how long has this been going on, anyway?"

"Well, I…it was a day or two after she arrived on the ship, I…I got curious, decided to take a look down there. I mean, I knew she was supposed to be dangerous and everything, but I was just going to take a peek. I was pretending to look for supplies."

"You just wanted to see if she really was shirtless, didn't you?"

"Well, I mean…"

Gabby rolled her eyes. "I can't _believe_ you."

"Anyway, it's not like I meant for it to go…like that! I just asked her a couple of questions, and then she…I don't know, she just…sort of blindsided me."

"_Blindsided_?"

"Yeah, like…I barely knew what was happening, until…"

"Even if I believed you, that doesn't explain why you went back."

"Well, I…it was…"

"You know what?" Gabby interrupted suddenly. "Never mind. I don't _want_ to know. Just…leave me alone."

"Why are you taking this so personally, anyway? Why does being friends with you mean I can't snog anyone I like?"

"That was not 'snogging,' Kenneth. You told me you didn't go for that sort of thing, and then you hook up with _Jack_ of all people and lie to my face about it…"

"I'm sorry. Really, I…I meant to tell you, I just…"

"You didn't. And I don't accept your apology."

Gabby slammed her finger on the "Deck 3" button, and an awkward few seconds passed in silence before she exited the elevator and went to her quarters, leaving Ken standing there with a grimace.

* * *

><p>Garrus looked to the side, avoiding eye contact. "Can it wait for a bit? I'm…in the middle of some calibrations."<p>

Shepard sighed, folding her arms. "Garrus…"

"We don't have much time left now. The Thanix Cannon needs to be perfect, or else…"

"We die? This _is_ a suicide mission, you know."

"Yes, but hopefully the suicide part will come at the end of the mission and not the beginning."

"We'll be fine. Even Tali said your upgrades were nearly flawless."

"_Nearly_ flawless."

"You really need to loosen up."

There was an awkward pause.

"You…were kidding the last time we spoke, right?" Garrus asked hesitantly. "About…sparring?"

"Was I?" Shepard asked with a smile.

"Commander…"

"I'm sorry, you said you were calibrating. I should go."

"All right," Garrus said, folding his arms and chuckling. "I'll see you later, Shepard."

Shepard left, smiling to herself and wondering if Garrus might be a bit more distracted during his calibrations than he had been before.

She started walking toward the elevator when she stopped and decided to go to the Life Support room instead.

Shepard was about to open the door when she chose to knock. Thane opened the door, looking confused.

"It's you."

"Hi. I, um…I always feel like I'm interrupting when I just walk in, so I decided to knock."

Thane smiled slightly. "I welcome your interruptions, siha."

"You still haven't told me what that means."

Thane hesitated, then gestured to his desk. "Please, come inside."

Shepard entered and sat opposite him. "So, is there anything you want to talk about?"

"Actually there is. I was wondering something."

"What is it?"

"When we were on the Citadel and you were talking to Captain Bailey, I spoke briefly with Jacob. He did not have very much to say to me, but…he gave me the impression that the two of you were in some kind of relationship. I…know very little about human relationships, so I recognize that I may have misunderstood."

Shepard's eyes lowered to the desk top and she shifted in her seat uncomfortably. "I don't know why he would say something like that to you."

"Then there is nothing between the two of you?"

"He is a friend," Shepard said forcefully, looking Thane in the eyes now. "Nothing more than that."

"I understand. I am sorry for troubling you."

"I'm glad you brought this to my attention," Shepard said, standing up. "I need to have a talk with him."

"Please…"

"I won't be hard on him, I promise. I just want to make sure we're on the same page."

Shepard left the Life Support room and went to the elevator; this time she wasn't smiling. She returned to the Main Deck and went to the Armory where Jacob was standing.

"Commander," he said with a smile.

"Mr. Taylor," Shepard said, straight-faced.

"Is…something wrong, Commander?"

Shepard sighed. "Jacob…you know that I want to keep things professional, right?"

"Well," Jacob said, folding his arms, "from our last conversation it sounded like you wanted things a lot _less_ professional."

"I mean outside this room."

"I know you don't want word of us going around, and I haven't told anyone. I even lied to Miranda's face."

"I just…some of the crew has been talking."

"Some of the crew?"

"I don't want to name names."

"Well…no offense, Commander, but…maybe it's you."

"Me? I haven't treated you any differently than the rest of the crew…as far as they know."

Jacob smiled. "You bring me out for missions a lot, Commander."

"Your combat skills are an asset."

"We've got a lot of people with assets on this ship."

"Okay, so maybe…I like being around you."

Jacob took a step closer to her. "Then maybe we need to stop pretending this isn't happening."

"All right," Shepard said, coming closer to him. "This is happening."

"Good. Then we should let 'some of the crew' know."

Shepard's eyes widened. "Wait…no. We can't just…"

"Can't you just give me a straight answer for once?" Jacob asked, frustrated. "I keep getting these mixed messages from you…too fast, too slow…"

"I…I need time to think," Shepard said, rubbing her forehead.

"Are you okay?"

"I'll be fine."

"Shepard…I know Horizon must feel like a long time ago now, but if you…"

"No," Shepard interrupted sternly. "We are _not_ discussing Horizon."

"All I'm saying is, if you need _more_ time, you take it. I'll be here. At least until we all get killed on this suicide mission, that is."

"I'll talk to you later, Jacob."

"Commander."

Shepard went back to the CIC; unexpectedly, Kelly wasn't standing in her usual spot. _Probably off-duty…probably asleep. I should do the same._

* * *

><p>Kelly Chambers was not asleep.<p>

"This is getting out of hand," the Illusive Man said, lighting a cigarette. "There's only so much longer I'm willing to stall EDI, but…Shepard isn't ready."

"I know," Kelly said with a sigh. "And it's even worse than I thought. She's completely distracted by her romantic interests. Ever since Horizon she's been building up these three relationships, holding onto them for as long as she possibly can even though she knows they can't all succeed…I feel like it would have been wiser not to sabotage her relationship with Kaidan Alenko."

There was a long silence. The Illusive Man regarded Kelly curiously with his piercing eyes, inhaling deeply from his cigarette. "You…question my decision, Miss Chambers?"

"I…n-no," Kelly stammered. "I misspoke."

"Good."

"Sir, I…what should I do?"

"It's your job to know what to do."

"But…"

"And it's my job to authorize it. So give me your professional opinion."

"All right…" Kelly thought for a moment. "It's not just Shepard we have to worry about. If we screw this up, we risk losing the loyalty of all three."

"True."

"She doesn't seem to want to make a decision, though, so this gives us an opportunity to make the first move."

"Also true. Although if we are making a move we should do so before the _Normandy_ reaches Tuchanka."

"Tuchanka?"

"Haven't you been reading Shepard's messages?"

"Yes, but she ignored the invitation. She's told the crew she wants to focus on upgrading the ship and the squad's combat resources."

"My projections for her combat preparedness are extremely favorable. The _Normandy_ and Shepard's squad have all the resources they need to survive the Collector forces. But I'm not convinced they're mentally prepared."

"I agree. But Shepard would never admit it."

"Then we force her to."

"How?"

"The Reaper IFF is a tricky piece of technology. EDI might have to shut down the ship's systems in order to fully integrate it…which means the _Normandy_ would have to land on a friendly planet."

"Grounding the _Normandy_ sounds like a good way to force Shepard to confront her personal problems, but…why Tuchanka? What exactly is this krogan festival?"

"The krogan have a tradition from long before the genophage of spending one day out of the year celebrating and engaging in ancient mating rituals."

Kelly smiled. "You mean…like a krogan Valentine's Day?"

"You could say that."

"But…that's a little bit ridiculous, isn't it? I mean…the fact is, there _is_ a genophage."

"Nevertheless, I'm sure the idea will receive popularity…which is certainly its intention. And my intention is to give Shepard a chance to clear things up. This holiday will be the perfect opportunity for her to make her final choice about who she wants a romantic relationship with. We just have to make sure she chooses the right man."

"And who is the right man?"

"You tell me."

"She…she's still hung up on Kaidan. She keeps rereading the email he sent her. Not to mention his picture on her desk."

"And?"

"And I think Jacob is too much like a replacement Kaidan for her. She brings him everywhere with her; she likes it when he questions her decisions and offers a grounded moral center. But the fact that she's even considering other options…" Kelly shook her head. "She won't pick him. She's leading him on, and the sooner he realizes it the more time he'll have to recover before the final mission."

"Then what are you going to do about it?"

"I…don't know. I'm worried about him. I like Jacob a lot. I don't want him to be hurt."

The Illusive Man raised an eyebrow. "Miss Chambers?"

"I…sorry." She shook her head. "I know, I know, he's going to be hurt…she can't pick him. We have to find someone else for him."

"You think that's the best strategy?"

"Yes. Let him know someone cares about him."

"And who should that be?"

"I think that's obvious."

"I agree."

"Then you're the one who needs to tell her."

There was a pause.

"You mean Miranda," the Illusive Man said.

"Yes. That's who you were thinking, wasn't it?"

"No."

"But…I thought Miranda did care about Jacob. And even if she doesn't love him, you could certainly order her to at least distract him so that he doesn't feel bad about Shepard's rejection of him."

"Miranda is very loyal to Cerberus, but there are lines I don't cross with her. Mr. Taylor is one of them."

"I…had no idea. I mean…I thought I sensed unresolved tension there."

"There's tension, and it's unresolved, but that's only because Miranda wants it that way. And in this one case I'm willing to give Miranda what she wants."

Kelly guessed there was a lot more to this story, but knew better than to ask. "If not Miranda, then who? There are no other viable candidates on the ship."

"Of course there are. You said you cared about him."

"Oh…I…but…"

"You were trained for this."

"Not for Jacob specifically."

"He may not have fish to feed, but you're a resourceful young woman. Find a way."

"Y-yes sir." Kelly cleared her throat; the Illusive Man dropped the butt of his cigarette into an ash tray. Neither of them was aware that there was someone else on the ship with a crush on Jacob. "Well," Kelly said, "that's one out of the way."

"Are you convinced she is actually interested in the other two?"

"Yes. I wasn't sure at first, but earlier I reviewed the surveillance tapes. She could go either way."

"And which way _should_ she go?"

"Well…Thane is going to die in a matter of months. That could be stressful for them both."

"You're considering the long term here. Right now I only care about the successful completion of this mission."

"Then…I don't know. She's much more serious with Thane. But I feel like she's more comfortable with Garrus. I don't think being in a relationship with him would introduce any unforeseen outcomes, and sleeping with him might just relieve tensions the way it's supposed to."

"I agree. Make it happen."

"But it's not that simple. We can't just find someone else for Thane. He's a…he's dying."

"Thane joined this mission because he's ready to die. If Shepard rejects him, he will probably be even more ready. I don't think his loyalty will be a problem."

"I…I guess you're right. But how do we convince her to pick Garrus?"

"You need to figure that out on your own. Now if you will excuse me, I have another call."

"All right. I…I'll get it done."

"I know you will."

* * *

><p>Shepard's door beeped. She jumped in her seat; no one had ever come to her cabin uninvited before. Wondering who it was, and thinking of three men in particular, she rose from her desk chair and answered the door.<p>

It was Miranda.

"Come in," Shepard said, gesturing inside.

"It isn't necessary," Miranda said, staying in place and folding her hands behind her back. "I just wanted to inform you that EDI is experiencing unexpected problems with the Reaper IFF. She wants to shut down the _Normandy_."

"What?" Shepard said, turning to EDI's console in her room.

EDI's image appeared. "All primary systems would be shut down for twelve to sixteen hours," she said. "The _Normandy_ will be forced to land during this time."

"And this is absolutely necessary?" Shepard asked, sighing.

"Any attempts to incorporate the Reaper technology while all primary and secondary systems are active will take considerably more time. Projections indicate that under these conditions the _Normandy_ would have access to the Omega 4 Relay after nine days."

"Then we have to land," Shepard said, rubbing her forehead. "Nine days is too long."

"Shepard, I came to tell you that the Illusive Man is aware of the situation," Miranda said. "He agrees that the best course of action would be to shut down the ship, and he thinks we should go to Tuchanka."

"Tu…" Shepard narrowed her eyes. "Did you read my private message?"

"Yes," Miranda said, completely straight-faced.

"Well…we seem to have nothing better to do. And the Illusive Man…why exactly is he interested?"

"He didn't explain his reasons to me, but I would guess he wants the crew to unwind before the final mission."

"I'm not sure how relaxing a shore leave on Tuchanka will be, but…all right. I'll tell Joker."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"Hello Jacob."

"Hello Yeoman Ch…Kelly."

Kelly smiled. "How are you doing?"

"Not much to say really."

"You seem to be coping with things very well."

Jacob folded his arms. "You talking about the suicide mission or my father? Because I don't feel much like talking about either."

"That's okay. We can talk about whatever you want. Or I can go, if you want to be alone."

"I…sorry. I didn't mean to sound…hostile. I do like talking to you. Clears my head."

"I like talking to you, too. You're always very honest with me. I appreciate that."

"I guess I just feel like I can say things to you that I can't talk about with other people."

Kelly hesitated. "I…should tell you something. I hope you don't feel like I betrayed your trust."

"What is it?"

"I know you told me there was nothing, but…I had thought…well…I had thought maybe there was something going on between you and the Commander. So I asked her about it."

"That was you?"

"What?"

"Commander Shepard came up here last night. Said 'some of the crew' were curious about me and her."

"That _was_ me," Kelly lied, faking an embarrassed smile. "Anyway…she assured me that you were friends, and she was your 'superior officer.'"

"The Commander likes to keep things professional."

"I was never a big fan of relationship protocol."

"I guess it doesn't really matter with Cerberus."

"Actually, the Illusive Man sees the benefit in having members who are…close."

Jacob laughed. "Really? Somehow I can't imagine him caring about that sort of thing."

_You have no idea._ "Anyway, um…" Kelly smiled cutely up at Jacob. "There's…a reason I asked the Commander about the two of you. I like you a lot, Jacob. I want to…get to know you better."

Jacob blinked several times. "You…really? I…um…"

"Of course you can say no," Kelly said quickly. "I wouldn't have mentioned it, I just thought…I mean, you said you liked talking to me, and…that you trusted me."

"Yeah, um…listen…" Jacob hesitated, clearing his throat. "I do like you, but…I like to keep things professional too. Yeoman Chambers."

"Okay. Just friends then."

"Yeah."

"Well, if you ever do feel like talking about anything, you know where to find me, Mr. Taylor."

"Yeah."

Kelly left, then went back to her quarters. She sat on her bed and sighed.

She had done the best that she could with Jacob. Once Shepard picked someone else, she would be there to comfort him.

The problem was getting Shepard to pick someone else.

The Krogan DMZ wasn't far, and they were heading straight for it; there would be no opportunities to interact with anyone outside of the _Normandy_ until they landed. Kelly needed to force Shepard to pick Garrus while they were still on the ship where she had some measure of control.

Unfortunately, Kelly had absolutely no idea how to get Shepard to pick Garrus. Unlike the rest of the crew, Garrus wasn't open to talking to Kelly (it comforted her somewhat to know that he used the same "calibrations" excuse for his beloved commander), so she couldn't speak to him directly about his feelings for Shepard. And Shepard would quickly deny any interest in a crew member, claiming, as Jacob did, that she just wanted things to be professional.

With no way of knowing how to make Garrus more appealing, Kelly had also considered making the other two options less appealing, but planning this proved equally difficult. Judging by the surveillance tapes, both Jacob and Thane had been very open with Shepard, so Kelly didn't have any useful information she could blackmail them with. Jacob had just proven that he was fairly committed to Shepard, and as far as Kelly could tell Thane had some kind of spiritual attachment to her.

All three of the men were interesting in their own ways, and (somewhat shockingly) Shepard seemed attracted to all of them.

_I need something good…I can't fail the Illusive Man, he's counting on me…_

Kelly accessed her terminal and opened the file that contained the past weeks' surveillance videos, separated by room. She accessed the Main Battery.

Kelly yawned as she fast-forwarded through hours of Garrus calibrating and running diagnostics. Then, something caught her attention.

_Of course…Shepard isn't the only person Garrus talks to on the ship…_

* * *

><p>"Hi Joker."<p>

"Oh…hi. What's up?"

"Just on a break."

"That's cool. I was just…pushing buttons and pretending to work. That's actually pretty much my job on this ship."

"You're not the only one."

"EDI does all the work for you too?"

"Not EDI. The quarian. Ever since we picked her up she's been handling all the hard stuff."

"Yeah? Tali's cool."

"Cool?"

"Yeah."

There was a pause.

"What, you don't like her?" Joker asked.

Gabby sat on the edge of a console. "I like her, I just don't think I've ever heard you say anything nice about anyone before."

"Hey, I say nice things all the time."

"About who?"

"Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Why are you here?"

Gabby got off the console. "Sorry."

"I'm not asking you to leave, I was just kinda wondering, since no one ever comes up here except the commander."

"I like talking to you in the mess, and…I was on a break, so I thought I'd come hang out."

"While _I'm_ on duty."

"You said you were just pushing buttons. And you're never around, except at dinnertime. Besides, I'm stuck in engineering all day. It's nice to see the view from up here."

"You and Ken broke up, huh?"

"We weren't together."

"Yeah. And you broke up."

"We're just friends! Except…not right now, because he's being a jerk."

"So to avoid him you came to talk to a _real_ jerk."

"I…like you."

There was a pause.

"You ever seen Star Wars?" Joker asked suddenly.

"Ye…wait. Old or new?"

"The _original_."

"I liked four through six, but I haven't watched them since I was a kid. I haven't seen the rest."

"Don't. Ever. Episodes one through three are terrible."

"What about seven through…"

"Shhh!" Joker interrupted suddenly, almost jumping out of his chair. "They don't exist!"

"But they made…"

"No. _They don't exist_."

Gabby smiled. "Okay. Um…why did you ask me if I've seen Star Wars?"

"It's a test to see whether or not I should hook up with someone. You passed, by the way."

Gabby blushed. "Wh…I…"

"I'm kidding. Come to my bunk tonight, we'll watch Episode Four. I'll invite Dr. Chakwas too, since she hasn't seen it. You can bring your dinner and that guy you didn't break up with."

"I'm not talking to him."

"Okay, whatever. I'll see you later though?"

"Yeah."

"Cool."

Joker swiveled his chair around; Gabby left.

* * *

><p>"Hello Garrus."<p>

Garrus turned around. "Yeoman Chambers."

"How are you doing?"

"Fine. I've…been busy reviewing some diagnostics, actually…making sure the _Normandy_'s ready for the Collectors."

"Anything you want to talk about?"

"Not really."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Okay."

Kelly walked away. _Good…_

She took the elevator down to engineering. Gabby and Ken were working at the same console, but there was clearly an invisible wall between them. Kelly didn't know exactly why they were fighting—she had been too focused on Shepard to give attention to the less relevant crew members' problems—but she was aware of Ken's hook-ups with Jack and figured Gabby must have found out. Normally this would interest her, but she had to focus on Shepard.

Kelly walked over to Tali. "I was wondering if we could talk. Do you have a break soon?"

"I'm technically on break, I just thought I should keep working."

"Oh…well…if you have a chance…"

"We can talk."

"Okay."

Tali signaled Kelly over to the mass effect core, which was nearby but loud enough that Ken and Gabby couldn't hear. "I actually wanted to talk to you," Tali said to Kelly. "I wanted to let you know that…I was thinking about what you said, about my father, and…it really helped me to think differently about what happened. I still miss him, but…" Tali stopped. "Thank you for helping me."

"I will always be here for you."

"You've always been very nice to me, even though initially I didn't appreciate your help because you're Cerberus. I'm sorry I was so difficult."

"That's okay. Believe me, you're much easier to talk to than most of the crew."

"Did you just come down here to check up on me, or was there something else?"

"Actually, there is. As I said, there are a few people who aren't as open with me as you've been. I'm concerned about one person in particular…I was hoping that as we got closer to the final mission he'd be able to talk, but he's very distant."

"You're talking about Garrus, aren't you?"

"I know that you're his friend. Is he okay?"

"I can't speak for him, but…I am a little bit concerned myself. He's been talking to me less. He seems even more focused on his calibrations."

"Does he really do that all day, for hours?" Kelly asked with a slight smile.

"It wouldn't surprise me," Tali said seriously. "I think he might be obsessed with that cannon. He wants it to be absolutely perfect."

"I overheard Miranda talking to the Commander when they were returning from the last mission. I've never heard her sound so confident about our success. I think all of us are realizing that we actually have a good chance of surviving, and we want to do all that we can to help that chance."

"That's part of it, but…" Tali hesitated. "Garrus may have more stake in it than the rest of us."

"You mean…what happened to his squad."

"No, I think killing Sidonis resolved that."

"Then what's wrong?"

"I…I worked with the chief engineer on the original _Normandy_. I helped Adams with some upgrades to the propulsion systems…I especially helped improve energy efficiency. I had selfish reasons for doing it—I wanted to learn as much as I could about the _Normandy_'s systems so that I could bring useful knowledge back to the flotilla—but I did help. No one else really did anything for the _Normandy_. Garrus used to do some work on the Mako, but it was more of a hobby. I think now that Garrus is being given the opportunity to work on this ship, he's realizing how much he could have contributed before."

"Is he really that disappointed over a missed opportunity to work some calibrations on his old ship?"

"We didn't just lose the _Normandy_. We lost Shepard."

Kelly slowly nodded. "I see."

"Everything changed," Tali said quietly, so that Kelly had to strain her ears to hear her over the drive core. "It wasn't the _Normandy_ that had held us together. It was Shepard. And after she died, we all went different ways. I lost contact with him pretty early on. I didn't even know if he was alive until Haestrom. The others were the same way."

"It must have been hard for everyone."

"We don't want to lose her again. We cared about her."

"Do you think Garrus might have…particularly strong feelings for the Commander?"

"Wh…what?" Tali laughed a little nervously. "Of course not, I didn't mean it that way. He respects her, but he doesn't…he's a turian. She's a human."

"Turian-human relationships aren't completely unheard of."

"They aren't? I…" Tali shook her head. "I still think that what you're suggesting is impossible."

"I don't know. Maybe you should ask him."

"Is there some reason why you would think this?"

"Intuition."

"Well…I've known him longer than you have, and I think you're wrong."

"I still think you should ask him."

"I…have to get back to work."

"Okay. If you want to talk some more, let me know."

"Of course."

* * *

><p>"Wrex is sending the landing coordinates."<p>

"Got it. Prepare for landing."

Shepard called the rest of her squad into the briefing room, where they held onto the railing as Joker entered the atmosphere. "This is a mandatory shore leave," she explained. "I'm not requiring you to participate in the krogan holiday celebrations, but EDI wants to save as much power as possible. Unless you have an emergency and need to come back to the ship, find something to do on Tuchanka. Only the mess and medical lab will be operational. The rest of the ship will be inaccessible."

"Great," Jack mumbled, folding her arms angrily. No one else looked particularly pleased either. Shepard's elite squad, with the exception of Tali, spent very little time associating with the rest of the Cerberus crew, and Tuchanka might give them even more privacy than the mess hall, depending on how many people were planning on staying behind on the _Normandy._ Unsurprisingly, many of the Cerberus crew weren't thrilled with the idea of an alien festival and planned to remain on board the ship.

"Wrex did invite us," Shepard said reassuringly. "He seems to think we'll have a good time, and I'm willing to…"

"Commander?" Joker's voice came over the comm.

"What's wrong?" Shepard asked.

"Someone took our parking space. We're being redirected to a different site."

"Another ship landed?"

"Yeah, definitely a Council ship."

"What's a Council ship doing out here?" Shepard wondered aloud, exiting the briefing room; some of the others followed her up to the cockpit.

"It's about the size of the _Normandy_," Joker remarked. "EDI said it's some kind of turian-asari hybrid ship."

"Wait," Garrus said suddenly. "Is…" he stopped and shook his head. "No. No, can't be."

"Can't be what?" Miranda asked curiously.

"Nothing. I'm sure it's not the ship I'm thinking of."

"The Council races aren't exactly welcome among the krogan," Miranda commented. "A Council ship likely means trouble."

"Well, I guess we'll find out who they are soon enough," Shepard said. "Joker, land at the new coordinates."

The _Normandy _landed in the new spot; Wrex himself was there to greet Shepard. Her squad gathered around, while Kelly Chambers lingered ambiguously in the background.

"Shepard," Wrex said.

"Wrex."

"Glad you could make it. And Urdnot Grunt. And…everyone else." He briefly nodded in acknowledgment to Tali and Garrus, ignoring the others.

"So what should we be expecting from this festival?" Shepard asked curiously.

"In ancient times, the krogan in this region were threatened by thresher maw attacks," Wrex explained. "The worst time of the year was when the thresher maws would gather in large forces and come above ground to mate. They could destroy entire settlements. So for one day every year the krogan people, regardless of clan, would gather together in a fortified city for a festival. While the thresher maws mated outside the city walls, the krogan would engage in mating rituals for the festival."

"Wait," Shepard said, narrowing her eyes. "This is a krogan _mating_ holiday?"

"Yes," Wrex said, smiling proudly. "The holiday hasn't been celebrated for thousands of years…not since we got advanced technology. But I've decided to bring it back."

"And what exactly are we supposed to do here?" Jacob asked.

"The festival is about proving your worth as a warrior," Wrex said. "We fight in tournaments. The ancient rules don't work here, because almost all of the krogan who are participating in the festival are from Urdnot so we can't fight by clan. But we _can_ fight by male or female."

"You mean…a battle of the sexes?" Shepard asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I mean males fight males and females fight females. You pick someone who's at your rank to mate with. That way you know it's someone who's worthy. The best of the females should have the best of the males to choose from."

"Interesting," Shepard said, imagining herself fighting Miranda and Jack and wondering what that would be like.

"You're my guests, so if you want to fight you'll be with my clan," Wrex continued.

"I thought you said there weren't clans," Shepard said, confused.

"The male clan," Wrex clarified.

Shepard blinked. "Oh."

"The tournaments are mostly for show," Wrex continued. "The top fighters from each clan get to form a krant for a team battle. Uta, the female clan leader, is betting that her krant will win, but I've got you, Shepard."

"Don't you think that makes things a little unfair?" Miranda asked, looking unexpectedly amused by all of this.

"On the contrary, it evens things up," a voice from behind the group said.

Everyone turned. A purple asari with numerous intricate facial tattoos and sleek commando armor was approaching them, with a tough-looking heavily armored female turian at her side. "Wrex," the asari said.

"Vash," Wrex grunted, looking displeased.

"Vash?" Shepard repeated.

"Shepard," Vash said, smiling and nodding her head. "We meet at last."

"Who are you?" Shepard asked, folding her arms.

"I'm…" Vash stopped suddenly. "Garrus?"

Garrus, who had been standing near Shepard last she checked, was trying to melt into the background behind Grunt and Samara when Vash spotted him. "I…hi," Garrus said lamely, turning to face her.

"What happened to you?" the turian at Vash's side asked, her beady eyes wide; Vash also looked very concerned.

"Oh, I…disobeyed Shepard's orders and she decided to teach me a lesson," Garrus said, smiling at his commander as he idly rubbed the facial mask he wore.

"You'd better be taking good care of him," Vash said, wagging a finger at Shepard. "He used to be one of mine."

"What?" Shepard asked, still unsure what was going on.

"Vash is a Spectre," Garrus explained. "Back when I was in the military I did a joint mission with her." He looked at her turian companion. "Amata and I both did, actually. Now it looks like Amata is…"

"First mate," the turian, Amata, interrupted proudly.

"Congratulations."

"Another Spectre," Shepard said, looking interestedly at Vash. "Haven't ever run into any…except for the one I killed."

Vash smiled, unmoved. "I'm guessing Wrex brought you here to join his clan in the festival."

"He did. What are you doing here?"

"My crew was invited by Uta, the female clan leader."

"So that makes us…competitors?" Shepard asked, still not really sure how the tournaments worked.

"Actually," Vash said, her smile widening, "it means we're supposed to choose each other as mates."

There was an awkward pause. "Thanks for the offer," Shepard said, raising an eyebrow, "but I'm not really interested in asari."

"I had heard you turned down even Sha'ira, the famous Citadel consort."

"She wasn't the only one."

"Well…just to be clear, I wasn't offering anything, Shepard. If your crew members want to…mingle…with any of mine, they're going to have to prove themselves in the tournament."

"I don't think we're interested."

"Some of you might change your minds," Vash said vaguely, and her eyes wandered over the faces of the crew; Shepard thought she saw her look particularly at Garrus.

"We should go," Amata said. "Uta is waiting."

"Right," Vash said with a sigh. "Well…if you'd like to see some of my other crew members, we'll be in the meeting tent. Some of them might be…familiar to you."

Shepard watched Vash and Amata walk away; then she clenched her fists. "_Asari_," she mumbled; Samara, standing close behind her, frowned.

"Vash is arrogant and something of a renegade, from the Council's perspective," Garrus commented. "She likes to bend rules, or ignore them completely, to get her way…which usually involves sparing convicted criminals or toppling corrupt governments to help 'the oppressed.'"

"I'm guessing the two of you didn't get along too well," Shepard asked, hoping it was true.

"She liked me, actually. Even offered me a place on her ship. I was young and stupid, but I wasn't stupid enough to say yes. I declined, finished my tour of duty, and went to C-Sec."

"But the other turian…"

"She stayed."

"I see. Do you know what she could've meant by 'familiar' crew members?"

"No, but…it's been years since I saw her, and she was working with the turian fleet at the time, not an independent crew. As a Spectre, she could've recruited anyone. Maybe someone we had dealings with in the past when we were hunting Saren."

"Well," Shepard said, turning back to Wrex, "I'd be happy to represent your clan in this tournament of yours."

"Good," Wrex said, smiling. "She's a tough one, Shepard. Do well enough in the tournament, and you'll get a chance to put her in her place."

"Excellent," Shepard said, looking over her crew. "We'll all do our best to show her who she's dealing with."

"Let me show you around the new male camp," Wrex said, gesturing for the _Normandy_ crew to follow.

* * *

><p>Kelly Chambers was trying not to have a meltdown.<p>

Making sure no one saw her, she snuck back onto the _Normandy_ immediately after Shepard's encounter with Vash. The _Normandy_ appeared to be almost entirely shut down for power conservation, but Kelly knew this was only an illusion to force Shepard into the tournament. She ordered EDI to open a channel to the Illusive Man and hurried over to the briefing room.

It took him a couple of minutes to respond, and when he did, he looked somewhat annoyed. "The _Normandy_ should have just landed on Tuchanka. What's the problem?"

"There's another Spectre here," Kelly said quickly and worriedly. "She's in the tournament, too, and she's got a whole crew and I don't know anything about them but they know Garrus and Shepard hates her but she hinted that she probably wants the crews to 'mingle' and…"

"Slow down," the Illusive Man ordered. "Who is this Spectre?"

"Her name is Vash."

"An asari," the Illusive Man said; he remained seated, smoking as usual, while a sophisticated information terminal projected the relevant data. "She doesn't like to file paperwork, but she's active enough that we have plenty of information on her. You mentioned Garrus?"

"He said he had served with her."

"It looks like she was requested by the Council to participate in a joint operation with his unit…but that mission only lasted a month."

"Those weeks made a pretty big impression, then, because she recognized him right away."

"There's no up-to-date crew manifest for her ship, but it would seem she likes variety…my sources show turians, quarians, krogan, possibly even a drell…and, most recently, it's been rumored that she has taken on a human. Interesting."

"This krogan holiday was supposed to be a chance for Shepard and the rest to wind down," Kelly said, frustrated. "She was supposed to relieve tension with Garrus, and now we have…"

"This is a complication, Miss Chambers, but we might be able to use it to our advantage."

"I don't understand how."

"It's quite simple. Before, we were limited to the _Normandy_ crew. Now we have new options."

"New options…for Shepard? But she…"

"No, Shepard should choose Garrus. I'm still relying on you to make that happen. But Shepard might be more willing to loosen up if the rest of her squad is." The Illusive Man paused, inhaling deeply from his cigarette. "I need you to investigate Vash's crew. We might be able to distract Thane if there's a female drell on board."

"All right, I'll try my best…"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

After getting a tour of the temporary male camp, which was certainly more impressive than the old Urdnot camp but still not much to look at, Shepard and her crew weren't sure what to do with themselves. Tournament processing wouldn't start for another hour.

Wrex had gestured her and her squad toward the meeting area, where a giant tent had been set up under which members of both clans could interact in between tournament battles. This was supposed to help encourage individuals to do better, and allow members of both sexes to keep tabs on prospective mates. Most of Shepard's squad was interested in seeing what the asari Spectre's crew was like; all except for Grunt decided to head over to the meeting tent, whether to meet Vash's crew or eat some of the delicious food that Wrex had described during the tour.

"Why aren't you going with them?" Wrex asked Grunt.

"I have no interest in talking," Grunt said. "I want to fight."

"The females have heard about you, tank-bred. They want to see you. If you show yourself, more will want to mate with you."

"I have even less interest in that."

"Huh," Wrex grunted, folding his arms. "No interest in mating? Have you ever seen a krogan female before?"

"Yes. In the tank."

"It might be different in person."

"I do not think so."

"If you fight in the tournaments, you will mate. Shepard and the rest of her crew can do whatever they want, but you are Urdnot Grunt. If you refused to mate it would be an embarrassment to Clan Urdnot."

Grunt scowled. "Then I will mate. But I won't like it."

Wrex laughed. "We'll see, tank-bred."

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, the meeting tent was full of excited krogan and some of the members of Vash's crew. There were many asari, all wearing similar uniforms, but there were also several different aliens wearing unique armor.<p>

Tali was surprised to see a quarian. She walked over to him, noticing by his suit design that he was on pilgrimage. "Hello," she said cheerfully.

"I-I…you are…I'm honored!" he stammered.

"Excuse me?"

"You are Tali'Zorah!"

"I…am."

"You saved the Citadel, you…you defeated Saren and the geth…"

"Commander Shepard did those things," Tali said, shifting her weight awkwardly. "I was just there to help."

"I want to be just like you."

"Um…thanks."

There was a pause.

"What's your name?" Tali asked.

"Qori'Anko."

"Your pilgrimage is going well?"

"Captain Vash has taught me a lot. I only joined the crew a few weeks ago, but I'm already learning about cultures that I never knew existed."

"That's good. The flotilla can use that knowledge."

"I love the flotilla, but there are so many things we don't ever hear about. Even being here, this krogan festival…it's all so interesting. I don't think we have any information about this."

"It's true that the krogan don't like to share very much about themselves."

"It's an honor that we've been invited here."

Tali hadn't considered this before. "I suppose it is." She paused. "What else have you learned on your pilgrimage?"

"You…you're interested in hearing about _me_?"

"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."

"No, I just…you fight geth. I don't do anything that exciting."

"There's enough quarians trying to figure out new ways to destroy the geth," Tali said, with some bitterness. "Interacting with different alien cultures is just as important. We need allies if we want to survive in this galaxy."

"You're so…wise," Qori said, awed.

"That's what pilgrimages are for," Tali said, smiling beneath her helmet. "And mine was not so long ago. Now tell me some of the things you've learned."

"Well…"

* * *

><p>A short distance away from Tali, Mordin was sniffing curiously at some of the krogan food when he was approached by an asari.<p>

"I wasn't expecting to see a salarian here. I imagine you're a member of Shepard's crew."

"Yes. Entire crew expected to leave ship during repairs. Assume you are from Vash's crew."

The asari seemed unfazed by Mordin's unusual speech pattern, and in fact spoke almost as rapidly as he did. "That's right. I'm Hennas."

"Mordin Solus. Pleased to met you."

"Wait…Solus? As in…as in _the _Professor Solus?"

"Statistically unlikely that you are confusing me for someone else."

"I was a student researcher for a salarian professor named Bead. He used to go on and on about you."

"Bead is now a professor? Excellent. Former student of mine. Very intelligent. Spent far too much time inside the lab however."

"That's actually one of the reasons I left the university. Everyone was so focused on their own little experiments that they lost sight of the people they were supposed to be helping."

"Came to same conclusion myself. Went to Omega and opened clinic there before joining Shepard's crew."

"Really? _Omega_? You must've been very brave."

"It was…" Mordin sniffed. "Something I had to do."

"Vash needs me for now, but someday I would like to do that kind of work. Do you think you'll ever go back to Omega? Maybe we could work together."

_Eyelid movement suggests flirtation. Unexpected._ "Uncertain. Current mission is very dangerous. May not return."

"May not return? You mean…you mean you're going on some kind of suicide mission?"

"Cannot say more."

"I understand."

"Hennas!" a voice called out; another asari who appeared to be a member of Vash's crew hurried over to her. "I've been looking everywhere for you, wha…" she stopped when she saw Mordin. "Who's this?"

"Professor Mordin Solus," Hennas said, smiling. "He's one of Shepard's crew."

"Oh," the asari said, raising her eyebrows. "Um…nice to meet you." She turned to Hennas again. "I need to show you something back on the ship."

"Right now?"

"Yes."

"Okay." Hennas turned to Mordin. "I, um…I have to go. But maybe I'll see you later. Are you going to be in the tournament?"

"Was not planning on it."

"Oh. Well…if you change your mind…let me know."

Hennas left with the other asari. Mordin hesitated a moment, not sure what to do with himself, but decided to remain where he was in case Hennas returned and wanted to talk with him more.

* * *

><p>"Excuse me."<p>

Thane looked up. "Yes?"

"Sorry to bother you," Kelly said breathlessly, "but I thought you might be interested to know that there's a drell here."

"From Vash's crew?"

"Yes. I just…I know it's probably been a while since you've seen another drell. I thought you might be interested in talking with her."

"Thank you. I will."

"She's over in the other corner, by the road to the female camp."

Thane stood and made his way over in that direction. He didn't get far before the other drell caught sight of him among the crowds of krogan and approached.

"I had heard that there was another drell here, but I wouldn't believe it at first," she said, looking amazed. "Tuchanka is the last place I expected to find another of our kind."

"Indeed," Thane replied, folding his arms behind his back and bowing slightly. "I am Thane Krios."

"I am Iri."

There was a short pause before Thane spoke. "It is unusual for a drell to be working with a Spectre. How did you come to be a part of Vash's crew?"

"I used to be a teacher, but everything changed when my sister's son was taken by batarian slavers. They were on the edges of the Traverse and it was too dangerous for the authorities to become involved. My sister's husband had a ship and we were able to track the batarians down, but we did not have the firepower to defeat them. We tried mercenaries, but we couldn't pay them enough for the job. We never could have anticipated that a Council Spectre would come to my nephew's rescue."

"Vash?"

"Yes. She and her crew went out of their way to save my nephew and the others the batarians had taken. When I saw that she was committed to helping all those in need, I decided to join her crew and contribute in any way I could. Captain Vash even taught me how to fight, so that I could help defend those who do not have the power to defend themselves."

Thane slowly nodded. "A noble cause. I was taught how to fight so that my body might be a weapon, not a shield."

"You…" Iri paused, and realization slowly dawned on her. "Are you part of the Compact?"

"I was. Now I am a weapon for Shepard."

"Why did you join her? I thought she left the Council to work for a human terrorist organization."

"Shepard has no loyalty to Cerberus. Her mission is to protect the people of this galaxy, much like your captain."

"Perhaps they are more alike than I realized. Vash is technically a Spectre, but she constantly fights with the Council. I admire her because she believes in a cause."

"Some people follow orders. People like Vash and Shepard follow their beliefs."

"And we follow them."

Thane smiled; Iri smiled back. There was a pause.

"I…have enjoyed speaking with you," Iri said slowly. "Are you going to participate in the tournament?"

"The organizer for the male clan, Urdnot Wrex, is a friend of Shepard's. She wants us to participate as a favor to him."

"The same with Vash and Uta." Iri shifted her weight. "So…I will see you in the tournament?"

"Yes."

"And…perhaps after the tournament?"

Thane hesitated. "That…is less likely."

"Ah. Well…we shall see how things develop."

Iri left, looking a little disappointed but also a little determined. Thane sighed, then wandered back toward the area where most of the _Normandy_ crew was gathered and ended up sitting at a table with Samara.

Not far away, Shepard, Garrus, Jacob, and Zaeed were standing around casually, mostly people-watching.

"There are a lot more krogan males than females," Garrus commented. "This tournament could get pretty intense."

"I think most of the drinks on these tables are alcoholic," Jacob said. "Wouldn't be surprised if this 'festival' turned into a riot. We should be prepared, Commander."

"Lighten up," Shepard said. "Wrex has things under control."

"I just wish the bloody tournament would start already," Zaeed grumbled.

"EDI is going to be working on the IFF for several more hours," Shepard said. "It's not like we can just go back to the ship once the fighting is over."

"Yeah, but it gives us less time to enjoy our prizes," Zaeed said.

"Wait…what?" Shepard asked.

"You heard the rules. The best fighters get picked by the women."

"You mean you're actually taking that seriously?" Jacob asked.

"Hell yeah!"

"But what if someone from Vash's crew doesn't pick you? What if you get picked by a krogan female?"

Zaeed laughed. "You haven't been round the galaxy much, have you?"

"Uhhh…never mind." Jacob edged away from Zaeed.

"We're here because Wrex wants us to fight in his krant," Shepard said. "I don't think he expects…or _wants_…any of us to be participating in the other part of the festival."

"I certainly hope not," Garrus said. "And I don't think the krogan would be very happy with a turian fighting in their mating tournament."

Shepard frowned as Vash and Amata appeared from out of the crowd, walking over in their direction. "There you are, Garrus," Vash said.

"I've noticed some of your crew," Garrus said. "Things have changed a lot since you were doing recon work for turians."

"Take a look at yourself," Vash said. "You saved the galaxy from the geth…and here I thought you'd be trapped in a C-Sec office the rest of your life."

"I owe all of that to Shepard," Garrus said, gesturing to her; she smiled at him.

"How's your sister?" Amata asked.

"Oh…she's doing all right. It's been hard on her…I try to keep in touch, but I've been so busy. About a week ago I got a letter from her, and…well…things haven't been going so well."

_Why didn't he ever talk to me about this?_ Shepard thought, frowning. _I didn't even know he had a sister… _

"COMMANDER SHEPARD!"

Shepard's thoughts were cut off; she turned to the source of the shout. _Oh God…_

"Commander!" Conrad Verner cried breathlessly, running over to her.

"Conrad," Shepard said through gritted teeth.

"Oh wow, it's SO GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN!" Conrad squealed, so loudly that everyone nearby turned to investigate the commotion.

"You…look…different," Shepard said, trying not to laugh. Last she had seen him, Conrad was wearing N7 armor; now, he appeared to be wearing asari commando armor. The body shape didn't exactly fit him.

"Yeah, isn't it great?" Conrad asked, grinning widely. "I kept thinking about everything you said to me, and so after I left the Citadel I stole a ship and invaded an Eclipse mercenary base!"

"I…don't remember saying you should do that," Shepard said, her eyebrow raised.

"I was on my way inside when suddenly Vash's ship landed and she and her crew attacked the base at the same time," Conrad continued, ignoring, or possibly not hearing, her comment. "She thought I was so brave, she made me a member of her crew and gave me this armor!"

"That was really nice of her," Shepard said, glancing over her shoulder at Vash; she was still deep in conversation with Garrus and didn't seem to notice Conrad. Shepard frowned, distracted again by thoughts of Garrus.

"ANYWAY, I learned a lot from Vash," Conrad said. "In fact, I learned the most important lesson of all!"

"And what's that?" Shepard sighed.

"HUMILITY. I used to think being a hero was about being a HERO, but actually it's about being someone who helps people even when nobody knows it. And I used to think the bad guys were people, but the real bad guy is the CAPITALISM that exploits the oppressed working class! Isn't that GREAT?"

"Wh…_what_?" Shepard asked.

"Y'see, Vash taught me that…"

"Listen, Conrad," Shepard interrupted quickly, "it's been great talking to you, but I have to go."

"Oh…but…"

Shepard darted off into the crowd, in no particular direction. She made it pretty far along to the other side of the tent before she realized she was standing out among all the krogan, with no familiar faces. She sighed, relieved that at the very least she seemed to have lost Conrad.

"Shepard."

Shepard turned; a krogan female approached her. "Who are you?" Shepard asked.

"Uta," she replied. "Of the so-called 'female clan.'"

"Right…Wrex mentioned you."

"He never stops talking about _you_."

"He was a good soldier when he served under me two years ago. I'm impressed by all the work he's done here since then. Especially this festival."

"You think this was _his_ idea?"

Shepard frowned. "Whose was it?"

"Mine. Of course he took all the credit."

"That doesn't really sound like him."

"Breeding alliances are complicated and stressful, and they usually result only in grief. Several females even abandoned their clans and went to a _salarian_ doctor to undergo tests for him, in the hopes of curing the genophage. That is how desperate they were."

"I was in Maelon's lab," Shepard said quietly. "I saw what happened there."

"I thought this festival would be a good way to take some of the pressure off the females and make the mating a more casual and celebratory event, so I proposed the idea. But Wrex wants to make sure everyone knows he's in charge. That's why he brought you here."

"What do you mean?"

"He made up the rule about each clan fighting in krants at the end. He wanted you and your crew to beat the strongest females so that he would look more powerful than me."

"But you invited Vash."

"Only after he invited you. And her crew understands. She's got a female turian, a female drell, even a female volus."

"I'm not sure where you're going with this."

"Have you ever seen a female volus? How about a female turian?"

"Now that you mention it…"

"This whole festival was set up by Wrex to strengthen the males' power…and you're helping him."

There was a long pause. Then Shepard said, "I hadn't realized it was like that."

"Well now you know."

Shepard activated her Omni-tool and contacted Miranda, Jack, Samara, Kasumi, and Tali. "There's going to be a change of plans…"

* * *

><p>The krogan had set up an impressive makeshift arena with tiered seating (although most krogan were standing), and many of the Cerberus operatives from the <em>Normandy<em> were assembling to watch Shepard and her powerful squad eventually take the stage.

"Saved a seat for you," Gabby said, smiling at Joker as he hobbled over to where she was sitting.

"Thanks," Joker said, sitting next to her. "I can't wait to see Shepard kick some ass."

"I don't know. This is a krogan festival. The fighting could be really hard."

"She'll be fine. I don't think anyone's stupid enough to take this tournament seriously."

"Yeah, I guess even the krogan don't seem all that serious about it. Maybe if Shepard wins the tournament they'll start taking _us_seriously, though. It's about time more aliens learned what humans can do."

"Careful, your Cerberus is showing."

"May I sit with you?" Dr. Chakwas asked, approaching them from the side.

"Sure," Joker said, and she did so.

"This should be very exciting," Chakwas said, rubbing her hands together.

"Do you know who's fighting first?" Gabby asked.

"No idea, but I heard a rumor that might shake things up a bit," Chakwas said with a smile.

"What did you hear?"

"Well…"

* * *

><p>Shepard walked over to where the females were gathered; Shepard's and Vash's female crew members easily outnumbered the female krogan participating in the festival. Shepard was heading toward Uta, but Vash intercepted her.<p>

"So, I hear you've chosen to betray your friend Wrex," Vash said with a smile. "Interesting."

"It's not a betrayal."

"Didn't he bring you here so that you could fight in his krant?"

"Yes, but…"

"Well, looks like you'll be able to explain it to him yourself."

Shepard turned; Wrex and an unfamiliar male krogan were approaching.

"You'd better be joking, Shepard," Wrex growled.

"You still get all of the men from my squad, including Grunt."

"Might as well send the tank-bred with the females too," the large krogan standing next to Wrex scoffed. "I doubt he can even fight without the human holding his hand."

"Quiet, Wratog," Wrex said, glaring at him.

"So, is it settled?" Shepard asked. "I fight in the female tournament, along with the rest of the women on my squad?"

"There's nothing to settle. If you're doing it, then you're doing it."

"Good. I'll see you in the final battle, then."

"Defeating Uta with you in her krant will only make me look even better. Maybe I should thank you, Shepard."

"Thank me if you want, but we both know who's going to win this thing."

Wratog folded his arms. "I would say that you have a quad, human, but…"

"Let's just get this thing over with," Shepard interrupted. "How exactly is this tournament going to work?"

"Male krogan will fight male krogan, and female krogan will fight female krogan," Wrex explained. "They will be ranked and choose mates at their rank. The same goes for the non-krogan."

"Except for the choosing mates part," Shepard clarified.

Wrex shrugged. "It's up to you. You're in the female clan now, so if you wanted, you could choose a male from your rank."

"But why would I…" Shepard stopped suddenly.

"What?"

Shepard blinked; all of a sudden, she had a solution to her problem. Deciding whether or not to move on from Kaidan, deciding which of the men on her ship to pursue a relationship with, had been consuming her for weeks. Now she had something even better than a reason; she had a method.

"I see," Shepard said vaguely, after a short silence. "And how does the final battle work if we have two different rankings?"

"The krant will have three members," Wrex said. "Two krogan, one non-krogan."

"Interesting," Vash said. "I guess you and I will be competing for that top spot, then, Shepard. I wonder who the male choice will be. I suppose to even things up a bit more the two men from my ship could fight with the male clan."

"Aren't asari not even technically female?" Shepard asked. "If you really want to even things up, you could join the male clan."

"Not going to happen," Vash said, narrowing her eyes. "Unlike you, I honor the invitation extended to me. It would be quite an insult to Uta if I suddenly switched sides on her."

"Enough talk," Wratog said. "Let us start the tournament already!"

"We'll switch between krogan and alien, and male and female," Wrex said. "That will give everyone time to recover in between battles. There are mostly krogan males fighting in the tournament, so they will have several rounds before the next non-krogan group battles."

"One more thing," Vash said quickly. "Amata, my turian crewmate, and Garrus Vakarian from Shepard's crew…can they fight in the tournament?"

Wrex hesitated.

"Are you going to allow this?" Wratog asked curiously.

"Since they're fighting other aliens, I'll allow it," Wrex said slowly.

"How exactly do these battles work, anyway?" Shepard asked.

"You'll find out…"


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Two krogan males had taken to the arena first; the non-krogan males had gathered together on the sidelines, watching them go at it with biotics. Large boulders served as cover, but one of the krogan revealed himself too soon, expecting the other to be recharging, and was hit by a biotic throw. He was knocked into another rock before he was sent spiraling out of the ring, disqualifying him. It took him several seconds to get up.

"Brutal," Jacob said, shaking his head.

"At least they aren't shooting each other," Zaeed commented.

"I hear it's biotics and melee weapons only," Garrus said. "Which is just great for those of us who don't use either."

"I overheard one of the krogan discussing hand-to-hand combat," Thane remarked.

"Now _that_ would be fun," Garrus said.

"I don't think any of this would be fun," Jacob said. "Humanity's come a long way since we lived in caves and beat each other up for the chance to 'mate.'"

"Nobody's forcing you to be in the tournament," Zaeed said. "If you don't like it, don't join."

Jacob shifted awkwardly. "I wouldn't, but…if someone were going to pick me, then it would look bad if I didn't participate."

"Who do you think would pick you?" Garrus asked.

"I don't know," Jacob said unconvincingly. "What about you?"

"It seems like Vash is taking the tournament pretty seriously," Garrus answered, looking out among the crowds and trying to spot her. "I'm not saying she would pick me, but…it wouldn't surprise me. And Amata is…an old friend. So that wouldn't surprise me either. Not that I'd want either of them."

"Well aren't you popular," Jacob said, folding his arms. "Who would you want?"

"I guess…whoever is the best fighter," Garrus said, also unconvincing.

"Assuming you deserve her."

"I hope COMMANDER SHEPARD picks me," Conrad said; the other men jumped, not realizing he was standing behind them. "I'm Conrad Verner by the way. Hi!"

"It's…unlikely that she would pick you," Garrus said.

"Well, she's going to want the best, right?" Conrad asked excitedly. "So if I win, she'll have to pick me!"

"Neither of those things are going to happen," Garrus said.

"You don't think Commander Shepard is going to pick the best man?" Conrad asked.

"I don't think she'll pick anyone at all, but even if she did, it would be the man she liked the most."

"Ohhhh," Conrad said; he leaned in closer to them and asked, in a whisper, "Who does she like the most?"

There was a pause.

"Me," Jacob said suddenly.

"_You_?" Garrus said incredulously.

"You heard me."

"I'm just surprised you sound so sure of yourself."

"I am sure. The Commander…" Jacob paused. "She has feelings for me. I guess there's no point in hiding it now."

"_Right_," Garrus said. "Which is why she asked me to sleep with her."

"What?" Jacob asked.

"Now it's hitting the fan!" Zaeed laughed.

"You _slept with her_?" Jacob asked, disgusted.

"No! I just…she _asked_ me to. We haven't…yet."

"Well maybe it was just a sick joke. With a turian, it'd have to be."

Garrus suddenly grabbed Jacob by the collar. "_What_ did you just say?"

"Calm down," Thane said, placing a hand on Garrus' shoulder. "Clearly this is a misunderstanding."

"This isn't any of your business, Thane," Garrus said, his eyes still focused on Jacob.

"Actually, it is," Thane said, his words carrying some sting.

There was a pause; then Garrus let go of Jacob. "This is really out of control," Garrus said.

"I'll say," Zaeed said, still laughing.

"Please tell me she didn't go after you, too," Garrus said to him in a strained voice.

"No. Not yet, anyway. But from the look of it she was working her way through the ship. Maybe it would've reached me eventually."

"Wow," Conrad said. "I had no idea Commander Shepard had so many different men! She's like Blasto the Hanar Spectre, except instead of a lover at every port, she's got them all on one sh…"

"I think we need to pay her a visit," Thane interrupted.

"Agreed," Jacob and Garrus said.

"Then let us find her."

"I've gotta see this," Zaeed said.

All three glared at him; Zaeed sighed. "All right, I'll stay here."

The three men walked over to where the female participants were waiting for the next battle. Shepard was chatting with Miranda when they arrived.

"We need to talk," Jacob said, looking furious.

"I'll be over with Samara," Miranda said, arching an eyebrow and walking away from them.

"What's on your minds?" Shepard asked.

"Don't play games with us, Shepard," Garrus said.

"Yeah," Jacob said. "You've done enough of that already."

Shepard sighed. "Look…I…I never intended for it to go this far. You have to believe me."

"That is not difficult to believe," Thane said, somehow maintaining his usual calm tone. "But you owe us an explanation."

"It was just supposed to be harmless flirting, but…it became something else. I started having feelings for you…for all three of you. And I just couldn't decide."

"So you lied to our faces," Jacob spat.

"No," Shepard said quickly. "I kept it casual. I've been careful not to let things go too far until I made a decision. You can all respect that, at least."

"I suppose I can," Garrus said slowly.

"I don't know if I would say that," Thane said quietly.

"I wouldn't have let things go _anywhere_ if I knew you were seeing them behind my back," Jacob said.

"I just…" Shepard paused. "I made a mistake. I realize that. I've hurt you, and…and believe me when I say that's the last thing I wanted to do."

"Then you could've just told us," Garrus said sympathetically. "But finding out like this…"

"I know. I waited as long as possible, and I deserve this."

"I think we deserve an answer, then, Shepard," Jacob said. "Let's settle this right now."

"You can't make me choose right now."

"You'd better choose, or I'm gonna make things a whole lot easier for you by getting myself out of this mess."

"Wait," Shepard said quickly. "Jacob, all of you, please…I…just need more time to think."

"I respect your wishes, Shepard," Thane said; the substitution of "Shepard" for the usual "siha" was not missed by her. "When you have thought more on the subject, you may come find me."

Thane started to leave; Garrus and Jacob glanced at one another.

"We should get back," Garrus said. "Find out who we're fighting."

"Right," Jacob said quietly. "I…I'm sorry if I overreacted, Commander. I just…I wish you had told us."

"You're right to be angry," Shepard said. "And when I make my decision, you'll be the first to know."

Jacob and Garrus started walking back, catching up with Thane.

"So, it really was that bad," Jacob said.

"She'll make her choice eventually," Garrus said. "She just needs more time."

"We're about to go on a suicide mission," Jacob said. "Not sure what exactly she's waiting for."

"Perhaps she is waiting for the tournament," Thane said suddenly.

"You…really think so?" Garrus asked.

"It would make sense, given where we are," Thane said. "And it would take the burden of a choice from her."

"Does she really care that little about us, that she'd leave it to some stupid krogan tournament to decide for her?" Jacob asked.

"The point is that she likes all of us," Garrus said. "And why not pick whoever is the best fighter? Seems fitting."

"You think _that's_ fitting?" Jacob asked.

Garrus shrugged. "Why not? If she likes us all equally, and we all have equal fighting strength, then the one who wants her the most wins. Seems logical enough."

"Depending on the circumstances, fighting strength could be decidedly unequal," Thane commented.

"Regardless, I'm going to fight my hardest in this tournament," Garrus said. "Maybe she picks me, maybe she doesn't. Either way, I've proven that she's important to me, because of how well I fight for her." He paused. "To be honest, I think that's how things have been with us up to now anyway."

"Perhaps there is something to be admired in this krogan system," Thane said. "While my own feelings for Shepard remain…unclear…I will fight in this tournament."

"Unclear is right," Jacob said. "I don't know what I'm feeling anymore…but maybe fighting will be the best way to clear my head."

"Then we're all in the tournament," Garrus said. "Just like before, only…well…I guess it really is just like before. We fight, and see if she picks whoever makes it the farthest."

"Perhaps we should inform Conrad that he may have a chance after all," Thane said.

There was a brief pause, then Garrus and Jacob both laughed. Thane smiled slightly.

"Maybe we really don't have anything to be upset about," Jacob said, looking a little less down. "I mean, Shepard is…well, she's _Shepard_. If she thinks we're all worthy of a shot at her, then that's saying a lot."

"Then let's prove our worth the krogan way," Garrus said. "I never thought I would hear myself say those words…"

* * *

><p>Several hours into the tournament, a majority of the battles fought were between krogan. The <em>Normandy<em> crew was entertained, however, when Grunt easily defeated his first opponent in a hand-to-hand battle, and appeared to be one of the favorites among the krogan male contestants in the second round. The _Normandy _crew could also cheer the fact that Jack and Shepard had defeated two of Vash's asari crew members in biotics battles; Miranda had beaten the female drell; and Thane had beaten the quarian Qori'Anko. Unfortunately, Tali was defeated by none other than Vash herself, who flaunted her victory and clearly expected to advance all the way to the final round.

The next contest was between Jacob and Conrad Verner. Jacob couldn't believe his luck; he was nervous that he would have to fight Garrus or Zaeed, both of whom seemed confident they could win the whole tournament.

Jacob took to the arena and faced Conrad, who looked ridiculous as usual in his asari commando armor. "All right, humans," the krogan arena judge said, "how will you set the terms for this battle?"

"How about biotics?" Jacob asked.

"Oh no," Conrad said quickly, shaking his head. "I'm not a biotic. Sorry if my armor confused you."

"Yeah…it is pretty confusing."

"We should fight hand-to-hand!"

"You serious?"

"Yeah! But no biotics or other weapons allowed. Is that okay?"

Jacob tried not to smile too widely. "Yeah, fine by me."

"Very well," the krogan said. "The first to be knocked out of the arena, or the first to surrender, is the loser. Take to opposite ends of the circle. I will count to three, and then begin!"

The two men followed the instructions; while he was walking over to the far side of the circle, Jacob looked up at the crowd. Shepard, and most of the rest of the _Normandy_ crew, were there smiling at him. He looked back at Conrad, who was trying to do jumping jacks and stretching awkwardly in preparation. _Piece of cake._

One they were in place, the krogan counted down from three. When the count was finished, Jacob took a defensive stance and slowly advanced toward Conrad's position. Conrad remained still for several seconds, then suddenly charged like a bull right toward Jacob. Jacob easily sidestepped him, chopping him on the back for good measure. Several people in the crowd laughed; Conrad shook it off, seeming unperturbed. Jacob suddenly felt bad for him. _I'm not out here to embarrass him. I should end this quickly._

Conrad suddenly charged him again; Jacob sidestepped, tripped him, and pinned him down. "You're gonna lose," Jacob whispered, leaning close to him. "Just give up now."

"Never!" Conrad cried; he headbutted Jacob fiercely, which managed to stun them both. Jacob took a few steps back, rubbing his head, as Conrad tried to stand up.

_All right, you're asking for this now,_ Jacob thought, annoyed by the stinging pain in his forehead.

Then suddenly, as Jacob was still blinking away the stars in his eyes, there was a loud roar and the ground began to shake. Jacob looked around wildly, instinctively wondering if Tuchanka were suddenly under attack. He lost his footing, the shaking stopped, and then it hit him—Conrad, that is, whose mad charge technique had finally paid off. The crowd, still shocked by the tremor, was even more shocked when Conrad's momentum carried Jacob all the way out of the arena limits.

"The human Conrad Verner is the winner," the krogan said. "The other human was knocked out of the arena first."

"What the hell just happened?" Jacob asked angrily, getting to his feet as Conrad was cheered on by other members of Vash's crew. "You can't count that! There was an earthquake!"

"The thresher maws have begun to mate," the krogan explained. "They will cause the ground to shake randomly throughout the day."

"Nobody told me about that!"

"A true warrior is prepared for any hazards he might face on the battlefield."

"It's okay," Conrad said, suddenly popping up behind Jacob. "I didn't know about the earthquake either. I was just lucky. Ha, my ex-wife always used to say that I had REALLY GREAT BALANCE!"

"What is _wrong_ with you?" Jacob yelled; then he forced himself to calm down. He turned and walked quickly away, knowing that he couldn't hold in the urge to punch Conrad in the face for very long.

Shepard walked over to him. "Jacob…"

"You don't have to say it. I already know."

"This isn't about the tournament anymore. You…you were right from the beginning. I tried to force it, and…"

"And if I had won that round, would you be saying the same thing? This is all just a game for you, isn't it?"

"Of course not! I…"

"I know, I know. You really care about all three of us." Jacob leaned in closer to her. "You know, I feel sorry for the others. They don't know what's really going on here. They weren't on Horizon. You still can't get ov…"

"That's enough," Shepard said, narrowing her eyes.

"Yeah. That's enough all right."

Jacob walked away. One of the last people he wanted to see—Garrus—approached him. "Hey, that was a tough break," the turian said, sounding genuinely friendly. "Don't know if I would've been able to survive that, either."

"Whatever," Jacob said, turning away from him.

Suddenly there was another tremor; Garrus caught hold of Jacob before he could fall over. When it stopped, Garrus let go.

"Thanks," Jacob said quietly.

"Don't mention it."

"Would you do something for me?"

"What do you need?"

"Kick the drell assassin's ass."

"I'm going to try."

Jacob walked away; Garrus remained standing where he was, glancing over at Shepard. She seemed rather angry.

"So, looks like it'll be you and me," Zaeed said, strolling over to Garrus.

"We're the last two left, so…yeah."

"That'll be one helluva fight."

"No kidding."

"We'll see if there are any more tremors."

"Yeah, that should be interesting."

"You ever wonder what it looks like?"

"What?"

"The thresher maws. Mating."

"Uhhhhh…no."

There was a long pause.

"You're thinking about it now, aren't ya?" Zaeed asked.

The krogan arena judge walked over to them. "We're doing you two next," he said.

"Thank you," Garrus said. "I mean…good."

"And how shall you…"

"Wait!" Wrex called out suddenly, heading over. "Another human male has just entered the tournament."

"That complicates things," the arena judge said. "How shall we proceed?"

"Hmmmm…" Wrex paused. "Put the two humans in the arena."

"What about the turian?"

"I've fought at Garrus' side in battle many times. I can vouch for his skill. Go ahead and advance him."

The arena judge blinked in surprise. "Whatever you say."

"Lucky you," Zaeed said to Garrus.

"Thanks, Wrex," Garrus said.

"We were comrades once," Wrex said. "Lots of krogan don't want to see a turian win, but…I'd be proud to have you in my krant."

"I'll do my best."

* * *

><p>Chakwas yawned. "I could use another meal about now."<p>

"I heard after this they're going to have lots of krogan fight," Gabby said. "We could all head over to the meeting tent and get something to eat."

"Sounds good," Joker said. "I just can't wait to see Zaeed vs. Garrus."

The krogan arena master stepped into the ring. "This next fight is between the humans Zaeed Massani and Kenneth Donnelly!"

"What?" Gabby cried, her jaw dropping.

Joker burst out laughing. "_Ken_ is in the tournament now? He doesn't stand a chance! I mean, he could've beaten _Jacob_, apparently, but…"

"They will be fighting with staffs," the arena master announced, tossing one large stick to each competitor; several of the krogan had also chosen to fight using those weapons. "Now take your places on either side of the arena."

"I just want to say something before we start," Ken shouted out to the crowd. "I want to say that…lots of people seem to think that I'm not…strong. Like I'm some sort of little girl that can't handle himself. Well…well I'm here to prove you wrong!"

"Did you call him a little girl?" Joker asked Gabby; she stared silently at Ken, her eyes wide.

"You think I'm going to go easy on you just because of that speech?" Zaeed asked.

"Well if you'd like to I wouldn't complain," Ken said, taking up position on the other side of the arena.

"Sorry, but I plan to wipe the dirt with you."

"I wouldn't be so sure of yourself. I…I took fencing in high school."

"You think this looks anything like fencing?"

"Well…no…but…"

"Just come here and let's finish this already."

The krogan counted down, and then Ken slowly advanced; Zaeed ran up to him, striking three times with the staff. Ken partially blocked one of the strikes, but ended up cowering as a result of the other two. Surprisingly, Zaeed then cast aside his staff. Ken immediately retaliated by swinging his own at the undefended bounty hunter; Zaeed took the blow, caught the staff, and wrenched it from Ken's hands.

"You wanna surrender yet?" Zaeed asked.

Ken scrambled back. "No! No, I…I'm not surrendering…"

"All right then."

Zaeed started whacking Ken with the staff, hitting him on his sides and on his stomach. Ken stumbled, lurched, and eventually toppled over. There was another thresher maw roar; Zaeed stepped back, readying himself for the tremors, but after several seconds they didn't come. Ken managed to stagger to his feet during the interval.

"This is your last warning, kid," Zaeed said. "Give up now or you're going to be a bloody mess by the time I'm through with you."

"I refuse to surrender," Ken said, clenching his fists.

Zaeed swung right at Ken's head; Ken tried to dodge out of it, but the edge of the staff made contact with his ear. Ken grabbed the side of his head, blood seeping through his fingers.

"That's enough!" Shepard shouted angrily from the sidelines.

"N-no," Ken stammered. "I'm still…"

Shepard marched into the ring and grabbed Ken by the collar. "You get yourself to sickbay _now_," she ordered.

"I…yes sir…"

Dr. Chakwas and Gabby rushed over to him, escorting him out of the ring and back toward the _Normandy_. Shepard turned to Zaeed next. "Follow me."

Zaeed reluctantly followed her out of the ring to a remote spot.

"How could you do that to him?" she asked.

Zaeed shrugged. "He asked for it. Literally."

"Then he's an idiot. But he's still a member of my crew. That blow to the head could have killed him."

"I dunno about that. I've certainly had worse."

"This isn't funny."

"Didn't say it was. Look, I wasn't trying to kill him. I just…"

"You could have picked him up and thrown him out of the ring as soon as you disarmed him."

"You're going to give me fighting suggestions now?"

"No, that's an order."

"An _order_?"

"That's right. This is supposed to be a holiday for the crew before we take on the Collectors. If you pull that kind of stunt with Garrus or Thane…you're off the mission."

Zaeed folded his arms. "Weeellll, I understand now. You want me to go easy on your favorites."

"Favorites?"

"You don't have to pretend. The whole bloody ship knows about you and those men."

Shepard lowered her eyes. "Ah."

"For what it's worth, I think you should pick the drell. The way he moves in combat…can't imagine what he'd be like in b…"

"I need to get back," Shepard interrupted sharply. "Are we going to have any more problems?"

Zaeed laughed. "You need to calm down, Shepard. It's like you said…this is supposed to be a holiday. Relax."

Shepard sighed. "I doubt that's ever going to happen…"

* * *

><p>"What's the situation on Tuchanka?"<p>

"It's a nightmare. I don't know what to do."

"You'd better fill me in on the details."

"Well…most of the crew decided to enter the tournament. Samara and Kasumi didn't…they wouldn't let Mordin in, not that he would have fought anyway, and…"

"I'm interested in _Shepard_, Miss Chambers."

"Right…right…" Kelly sighed. "Well, it looks like she's using the tournament as a way of deciding which man she wants to pick."

"I…see. That's more extreme behavior than I was expecting from her."

"Jacob got knocked out in the first round. I think he's really ashamed. It wasn't his fault, there was a…"

"I thought we had decided on Garrus."

"We did, we did. Garrus is still in the tournament. I was talking to a couple of the tournament organizers, and they said he's going to fight Thane next."

"And you're worried that Thane will win, and Shepard will pick him."

"Yes."

"Then you need to come up with a way to ensure that Garrus wins."

"How do I do that?"

"I don't care. Be creative."

Kelly rubbed her forehead. "I don't know…the more I think about it, the worse it would be if Shepard picked Thane…it could stress her out, it could make her unfocused on the mission…"

"You know the stakes. Find a way to make this work. This is your job."

"I…I know…"

"I have other matters to attend to. Keep me updated on your progress. And Miss Chambers?"

"Yes?"

"I will not accept failure."

Kelly gulped. "Yes sir."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

There was a long lull between Zaeed's victory over Ken and the next non-krogan battle, so most of the _Normandy_ crew took it as an opportunity to rest and get food at the meeting tent.

Mordin had spent some time on the ship, but with his lab shut down to conserve power and most of the crew out watching the contests, he really didn't have anything to do there. He returned to the meeting tent to grab a meal just as most of the other non-krogan were beginning to gather there.

"How are you doing, Mordin?" Shepard asked him.

"Ah! Shepard. I am fine. Unable to do work, however. EDI cannot yet restore power to my lab."

"I'm sorry about that. I'm also sorry the krogan wouldn't let you be in the tournament."

"Not a problem. Was not interested in tournament anyway."

"That's probably a good thing. At this rate we'll be going into the Omega 4 Relay with half my crew in sickbay."

"That bad?"

"I might be exaggerating a bit. But I didn't realize how seriously people would take this."

"Too much time spent with krogan. Primal instinct begins to surface. Humans experience urge to behave as ancient ancestors did, when individuals fought each other for potential mates."

"I wouldn't say the krogan are on the same level as human cavemen."

"No need for my opinion, Shepard. See for yourself."

"Well…I'll be going."

"Unable to see past pity for krogan species," Mordin mumbled to himself, as Shepard walked away. "Most unfortunate."

"Professor Solus?"

Mordin turned; Hennas approached him. "Professor Solus…I haven't seen you around since the tournament started."

"Returned briefly to my ship. No access to my lab, however."

"Why not?"

"Ship is undergoing repairs. Reason for the stay on Tuchanka."

"Repairs? I guess that makes sense. Rumor has it Shepard has been fighting the Collectors."

"Will not comment on rumors."

"Of course not." Hennas smiled. "Just wanted to say that if you are taking down the Collectors, it's about time someone went after those bastards. Their attacks on human colonies are despicable."

"Indeed."

There was a tremor accompanied by multiple roars; the tables of food shook a bit, but fortunately nothing fell over.

"The thresher maws are pretty close," Hennas said. "It's strange that the krogan chose to set up camp right next to their breeding ground."

"'Breeding ground' may be misnomer. Unclear how thresher maws reproduce, but krogan legends do not match scientific data. Evidence suggests asexual reproduction using spores."

"Really? Then what are they doing out there?"

"Unknown."

"Maybe they're just having a bit of fun. Today they release all their inhibitions and come together in a sort of sexual union, even though they can't reproduce."

"Like krogan."

There was a pause.

"Was that…a genophage joke?"

"Err…no."

"I can't believe you…" Hennas stopped. "No, it's…it's okay. I spent a lot of time on Sur'Kesh. I know the way people talk about the genophage in salarian culture…and to be perfectly honest, in asari culture as well. It's become so acceptable to talk about the krogan like that, it's easy to do it without thinking."

Mordin shifted awkwardly, unsure how to respond to that.

"I remember how awful it was working in the labs at the university," Hennas continued quietly. "Everyone talked about the genophage project like it was the greatest achievement in salarian history. Everyone wished they could have been a part of it. It was like they were all hoping another violent species would come around so we could all relive the excitement of inventing an instrument for genocide."

"Unlikely that any future conflict will require so drastic a resolution," Mordin said, rather more slowly than usual.

"Require?" Hennas repeated. "No conflict _requires_ genocide."

"Debatable."

"_Debatable_?"

Mordin avoided eye contact; Hennas lowered her voice to a hiss. "Are you telling me…that you _support_ the genophage?"

"Genophage was necessary."

Hennas shook her head, glaring at him. "It's funny…I've rarely met a salarian who's against the genophage. I don't really expect that position from strangers. But here you were, sitting on Tuchanka, attending a krogan _mating_ festival and eating krogan food, and I thought…I thought there's no way this salarian supports the genocide. He couldn't be _that_ much of an ass."

"Easy to sympathize with krogan," Mordin said. "Easy to believe that genophage was wrong, without all of the facts. Naïve to claim that an alternative solution would have…"

Hennas slapped him.

Mordin blinked several times; Hennas stormed off. Mordin sunk lower into his chair as several people gawked at him.

_Not getting laid tonight._

* * *

><p>"Good to see you back on your feet, Donnelly."<p>

"Thank you sir. It was really only a flesh wound. Nothing Dr. Chakwas couldn't fix."

"Glad to hear it."

As Shepard walked off, Ken scanned the area. He finally spotted Jack and walked over to her.

"So…how are you liking the tournament?" he asked casually.

Jack arched an eyebrow. "I was _born_ to win this kind of fight. Unlike you."

"But…but at least I went out there. I mean…"

"You wanted to prove something out there, didn't you?"

"Well…yes."

"Prove you were strong?"

"Yes."

"Let me tell you something. Strength isn't about letting people hit you and enjoying it. They've got a different word for that."

"I didn't enjoy it! I was just trying to…"

"Next time you want someone to knock you around, don't come bothering me. I bet Zaeed would do it again for you, if you asked nicely."

"First I'm a weakling and now I'm a bloody masochist!" Ken cried, throwing up his hands. "How can I possibly prove to you that I'm…"

"Here's a better question," Jack interrupted. "Why am _I_ the person you need to prove this to?"

Ken sighed. "I…I just thought maybe you liked me. Even just a little bit."

"I don't."

"All right…well…I won't be bothering you anymore."

Ken hung his head and turned away.

"Hey," Jack said suddenly, and she seemed to have softened up a bit. "I…shit. I don't know what to say. Just…don't go beating yourself up about this, okay? You should go talk to that friend of yours, the other engineer."

"I think she's a bit busy with _Joker_."

"Really? Well…if it means anything…I don't think it would take much for you to prove you're better than _him_."

Ken smiled slightly. "Thanks, Jack."

"Yeah, yeah. Now leave me alone."

* * *

><p>"The two quarians, knocked out in the first round," Tali said, shaking her head. "We're not doing a very good job of representing our people."<p>

"You don't need to do well in a tournament to represent our people," Qori said quickly. "You're the Savior of the Citadel."

"As I told you before, I was just helping. On my own…well, you saw what happens when I'm on my own."

"Vash is an asari Spectre. She's stronger than any quarian."

"You're right…our people have different skills."

"So…um…are you…choosing anyone?"

"What?"

"For…for the festival."

"Oh…oh! You mean…" Tali shook her head. "No, no, I'm not doing that."

"But…why not?"

"Why not? Are you really asking me that?"

"I just thought…"

"You're on pilgrimage! Your family should have explained the risks to you!"

"I know the risks…I just thought…"

"Any kind of physical contact has to be extremely special. The risk of illness is so high that it has to really be worth it."

"I…I thought maybe we had something special."

"_What_?"

"You know…"

"Qori, we don't even know each other!"

"But we do! We've been talking, and…and I know you, Tali'Zorah. Everyone knows you."

"That isn't special."

"Maybe we could make it special."

"You…" Tali shook her head again. "You're just a kid, so…I don't blame you. But you have to believe me…sex is really dangerous. Okay? You could die of an infection."

"I…I guess I didn't really think about it that way." Qori extended a hand. "Thank you for…for making sense. I was ready to do something really stupid."

"You're welcome," Tali said, shaking his hand. "Someday you _will_ find someone very special, and then you'll know the time is right."

"Have you found that someone?"

"Not yet."

"Well…thanks again."

"You're welcome."

* * *

><p>"Do you need something?"<p>

"I just wanted to talk."

"By all means."

Kelly tossed some hair out of her face, trying not to look nervous. "So…how are you doing, Thane?"

"Well enough," Thane responded; he opened his mouth to speak more but began coughing.

"Are you okay?"

"Y-yes…I fear that the high level of pollution here on Tuchanka may be beginning to affect me…however…it is nothing serious."

"Are you sure? Maybe you should go back to the ship!"

"A few more hours will make no difference."

"But…but really…if it's a health risk, you shouldn't be out here doing…"

"Thank you for your concern, but I will be staying here on the surface until the _Normandy_ departs."

"Okay." _Ugh…now I have to be terrible._ "So, um…you know the Commander pretty well, right?"

"Not as well as some."

"Well…it's just…do you really think she's going to pick Garrus at the end of the tournament?"

There was a pause. "I have no idea."

"It's just…when we first got here I thought there was no way she would take it seriously and actually pick someone, but I heard a rumor that she was going to pick Garrus. Which makes sense, I guess, since he's pretty much all she ever talks about to me. But then Gabby was saying that…"

"Forgive me," Thane interrupted, "but I am not one for gossip. Perhaps someone else in the crew might enjoy discussing this topic with you."

"Oh…I…I'm sorry. I didn't realize I was bothering you. I'll go now."

Kelly walked away, feeling pretty awful about herself. _He seemed genuinely upset. I bet it's getting to him. Maybe that and the cough will give Garrus the edge he needs._

Thane started walking back to the arena area, hoping to catch some of the krogan fights that were taking place, when Vash's drell crew member approached him. "Hello again."

"Hello."

"I…I wanted to tell you that I watched your fight against Qori."

Thane smiled. "He is young, but with more training he could become a very strong fighter."

"Vash has been working on training him, as she did with me. Hopefully he will take to it better than I did."

"I watched your fight against Miranda. She is an extremely powerful biotic with genetic enhancements that give her the advantage in most contests."

"You don't have to make excuses for me. I could have done better." Iri paused. "I…really enjoyed watching you, you know. I've never seen anyone fight like you do. It was…it was beautiful."

"That was the way I was trained."

"But it's more than that. You had a rhythm, a way of moving that was…"

Thane suddenly started coughing; Iri frowned. "Are you all right?"

"Yes," Thane said, clearing his throat. "It's just the pollution."

"Maybe you should go inside somewhere."

"I will be fine."

"Are you sure? I…I could take you back to my ship."

There was a pause.

"I don't want to make you uncomfortable," Iri said softly. "We could just go back to my quarters and…talk, for a while."

"I don't…" Thane started coughing again.

"Are you sure you're all right?" Iri asked.

"I'm dying."

"Wh…_what_?"

"I am in the final stages of Kepral's Syndrome."

Iri covered her mouth in shock. "Enkindlers have mercy…shouldn't you be in a hospital? Receiving treatment?"

"I would rather be on the _Normandy_."

Iri's eyes suddenly glazed and she said, very rapidly, "Flashing lights on the monitors…a cell, he said…I touch his hand…she pulls me away…"

Thane waited patiently for her to recover from the memory. "Do you want to talk about him?" he asked.

Iri's eyes filled partially with tears. "My uncle died of Kepral's. One of the only times I spoke to him was in the hospital room, when he was dying. My mother didn't want me to see him."

"Did she think you were too young?"

"No…he was…an outcast in our family. He followed the old traditions. Prayed to all the old gods."

"Ah."

"My mother said that the disease was a punishment because he refused to accept the wisdom of the Enkindlers."

"That is a terrible thing to say."

"I know. I actually used to believe her, but…but I know better now. All drell need to share the guilt for what happened to our planet and our people. We can't just blame the ones who follow the old traditions."

"I follow them."

"You…what? You…you _do_?"

"Yes," Thane said, his face hardening at her tone.

"I…I didn't realize."

"Perhaps you should have assumed. After all, it would seem your mother was right about Kepral's."

"What? I told you I don't believe that!"

Thane lowered his head. "I…apologize."

"It's all right. And I'm sorry if I sounded rude."

"I accept your apology."

"Thank you." Iri wrung her hands a bit nervously. "I…I would still like to get to know you better. If you want to come back to the ship with me."

"I…don't know…"

"We could just…talk, like I said. In fact…I would like to know more about your faith."

"Really?"

"Yes. You can tell me about your beliefs, and…and I could tell you about the Enkindlers."

Thane blinked. "I…think I know quite enough about the Enkindlers."

"Well maybe we could just have a discussion about…"

"Thank you, but I must decline your offer."

"But…"

"I will be returning to the _Normandy_ now."

"I just…"

"Goodbye."

Thane turned and hurried away from her. He started heading back toward the arena, then began coughing. Looking around, he spotted Grunt standing alone, pacing.

Thane approached him. "Grunt…would you be willing to do a favor for me?"

"Probably not."

"I…see."

"What's the favor?"

"Well…if you find the time…I need to go back to the _Normandy_ for a little while. Could you have someone sent there to inform me when I need to return to the tournament to fight Garrus?"

"Heh, that's right, you're fighting Garrus! Wouldn't want to miss that. Sure, I can do that."

"Thank you."

Thane left.

Shortly after, one of clan Urdnot's top young warriors, Wratog, approached Grunt. "You have been doing well in the tournament, tank-bred."

"I am superior to all of the krogan here."

Wratog laughed. "You have yet fought weaklings. We shall see how you hold up in a true test of strength."

"You shall see me win the tournament. Easily."

Wratog narrowed his eyes. "Uta is _mine_."

"You can have her."

"Even the female clan leader isn't good enough for you?"

Grunt leaned in close to Wratog. "If you want to fight, let's fight. Otherwise…leave me alone."

"See you in the ring," Wratog said threateningly, then he turned and walked away.

* * *

><p>As evening approached, the tournament continued to be in full swing, although the number of participants had narrowed significantly. The losers among the krogan males had mostly either left the camp or gathered together in a corner of the meeting tent, chugging ryncol and betting on which of the remaining males had the best chance of ending up with Uta. Most of them supported Wratog, widely considered the strongest individual warrior in Clan Urdnot. Wrex, who wasn't participating in the tournament himself except for the final krant fight, was silent about his favorite, but everyone suspected that he was rooting for the underdog, Grunt.<p>

For the non-krogan, the contests had gotten far more intense. Excepting Zaeed, who knocked Conrad Verner out of the ring within seconds, none of the competitors had a clear edge. Shepard barely defeated the tough turian Amata in a melee contest. Despite Joker's multiple attempts to convince Wrex that there needed to be a Miranda-Jack showdown, Miranda was slated to fight one of Vash's asari crew (who had easily beaten her volus crewmate in the previous round), and Jack would be fighting Vash.

Jack had done extremely well in all of her previous bouts, using the terrain of the ring against her foes and seeming to relish every moment of the combat. Her fight with Uta's favorite Vash, and Thane's fight with Garrus, were big enough draws to get most of the krogan to show up and watch. Wrex scheduled Garrus and Thane to fight first, then Jack and Vash. After that, there would be a long series of krogan-on-krogan fights before Miranda would resolve her contest with the asari.

Thane was seated at Dr. Chakwas' desk in the empty medical lab, meditating, when Garrus entered. "Hey," he said. "We're coming up soon. Grunt told me I could find you here."

"I…didn't expect him to send you."

"Listen…we don't have to do this. I mean…you're sick, and…"

"On the contrary," Thane interrupted, standing, "I am perfectly fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. We should proceed to the ring."

"But…really, the more I think about it, the more this fight seems like a bad idea. I think we should call it off."

"You're afraid of losing."

"Ha…" Garrus folded his arms and cocked his head to one side. "And here I thought I was doing you a favor."

"If you're having second thoughts…throw the fight. Allow me to win."

"What? No. That's not going to happen."

"Then there is no reason to discuss it any longer."

Garrus, annoyed, proceeded out of the _Normandy_ and headed toward the arena, with Thane close behind. A tremor briefly impeded their progress; when they reached the arena, the crowd was wildly reacting to an impressive victory by Wratog.

"You two are up next," the arena judge said to them. "How will you be fighting?"

"Hand to hand," Garrus said.

"Are you…serious?" Thane asked.

"I'm better than you might think."

"If…" Thane stopped, coughing a few times.

"Keep it up," Garrus said. "The crowd will really sympathize with you."

"And what will your excuse be when I defeat you?" Thane asked.

Garrus chuckled. "Good point."

The judge directed them to take positions. While he counted down, Garrus carefully scanned the terrain of the arena, and Thane closed his eyes and prayed.

Shepard was standing right at the edge of the arena; Grunt took to her side. "The turian is going to lose," he said, looking pleased by this.

"We'll see," Shepard said quietly.

The fight commenced. Several seconds of very slow movement passed as each combatant prepared for an assault; when they finally engaged each other, their movements instantly became too quick to follow. Thane struck Garrus rapidly several times, but Garrus weathered the blows and used Thane's offensive strategy to his advantage, finding an opening in his defenses and getting in a strong blow to the drell's head. Thane retreated and there was more waiting, then another engagement similar to the first; this time, Garrus seemed to have picked up on Thane's movements and managed to block many of the blows.

"The turian is better than I thought," Grunt grunted.

"His name is _Garrus_," Shepard said, her eyes darting between the two men as she tried to study every movement.

Despite it being a very close contest, it was over fairly quickly. The battle was so intricate and precise that it became clear whoever made the first mistake would lose. And Thane made the first mistake.

Thane tried to trip Garrus as he stepped forward to take a swing, but the drell's foot slipped and he lost his balance. Garrus caught him, jabbed him twice in the face, then hurled him toward the nearest limit line. Thane hit the ground hard and barely slid past the edge.

"The turian has won!" the arena judge yelled; the _Normandy_ crew cheered Garrus' incredible performance, while the krogan crowd argued about whether or not his strong showing was reason enough to give a turian a chance to fight in the final krant battle.

Garrus walked over to Thane and helped him get to his feet.

"You are much better than I thought," Thane said.

Garrus leaned in close to him and whispered, "You bastard. You let me win."

"I…thought I was being subtle."

"Well I doubt anyone else noticed."

"Good."

"So…you had second thoughts."

"Yes."

"You could have been a little easier with the punches if you were going to throw the challenge anyway."

Thane smiled. "I could have."

Garrus and Thane stopped whispering when they saw Shepard approaching. "That was quite a fight," she said, smiling at them both. "Too bad the Collectors use guns."

"I wonder which of us is a better shot," Garrus said, glancing sideways at Thane.

"I…must retire to the _Normandy_ now," Thane said. "I wish you both the best of luck for the remainder of the tournament."

Thane walked off.

"So," Garrus said, "that was…really hard."

"You took some serious hits. Are you doing okay?"

"I'm fine. Give me a few minutes to recover and I'll be ready to take down Zaeed, no problem."

"Good."

"And…after that…we can…talk. About…uh…things. Right?"

"Right."

"Great."

"Okay."

Shepard smiled, and the two parted ways. Not far away, Kelly Chambers breathed a deep sigh of relief.

Shepard headed back to the arena, where Jack and Vash were just starting their fight. Shepard hoped Jack would pull off the win; she was sick of Vash's condescending attitude and obnoxious crew.

Like the battle between Thane and Garrus, this match was very difficult to follow visually. It was a biotics-only fight, and large blasts of blue and purple from both combatants made their individual movements somewhat indistinguishable.

At one point, Jack made Vash stumble with a strong pull, but Vash retaliated with a shockwave. Jack slipped and cut her hand on a nearby boulder; cursing loudly, she jumped behind the boulder to give herself a moment to recover. Vash then surprised her with a powerful biotic charge attack.

After charging Jack, Vash grabbed her; Jack was stunned and appeared unable to retaliate. Suddenly, Vash let go of Jack and hit her with a ferocious biotic throw, which sent Jack vaulting over the limits of the arena and crashing into the audience stands.

As the arena judge declared Vash the winner, the crowd dispersed to give Jack room to get up. She remained still for a few seconds, then suddenly jumped to her feet. "That BITCH!" she screamed. "She cheated! She hit me with some kind of poison!"

"Oh _please_," Vash said, rolling her eyes. "Everyone saw what happened."

"I'll rip your fucking…" Jack started, charging up a biotic power with her injured hand.

"Jack, no!" Shepard shouted, grabbing her other arm.

"Let go of me, Shepard!"

"It's over."

"But she…"

"I know she cheated. Now let me handle this."

Jack kicked the dirt. "Fine. I'm over this shithole anyway."

Shepard marched over to Vash, who was being congratulated by the turian, Amata. "You're not fooling anyone," Shepard said, her eyes narrowed.

"Sore loser, Commander?" Vash asked.

"You hit her with some kind of paralysis agent after you charged her."

"Can you prove it?"

"I don't have to."

"Convenient."

"I also don't care. It's funny, really, that you take this tournament so seriously you would cheat just to advance."

Vash signaled for Amata to leave them alone; the turian reluctantly left. Shepard prepared herself for a possible attack by the asari, but she merely lowered her voice. "You and your Cerberus," Vash said disgustedly. "All you care about are human interests."

"What does Cerberus have to do with this?"

"Nothing. That's my point."

"You're not making sense."

"I didn't come here for a vacation. I came here for Uta. When I stand beside her and we defeat Wrex in the final krant battle, it will be a very important political victory for the krogan females."

"You expect me to believe that you cheated for the krogan? You're deluding yourself."

"No, _you_ are. You humans are all the same. You go around the galaxy doing whatever you want without thinking about the consequences. This festival is _important_, even if it isn't important to you."

"You know what? I'm through with this. You can have your political victory. My people really _did_ just come here for a vacation, and if this is what they're going to get, then it's not worth it."

"You're backing out?"

"That's right."

Shepard left Vash, then called Miranda, Garrus, and Zaeed together. "This tournament is over."

"You serious?' Zaeed asked. "Just because that asari coward cheated against Jack?"

"This whole thing is a lot more political than I realized. Trust me, we don't want to get in the middle of it."

"I'm with you, Commander," Miranda said. "I've had a bad feeling about this from the beginning."

"Damn," Zaeed said to Garrus. "And I was looking forward to kicking your ass."

"I guess we'll have to reschedule," Garrus joked.

"Good. Come by my quarters on the _Normandy_ anytime and I'll show you what I can do."

Miranda arched an eyebrow; Garrus looked confused. Shepard spoke quickly. "We've still got hours to go before the _Normandy_ is ready to leave. I suggest you take full advantage of the food. If you want to hang around the arena, we can at least continue to cheer on Grunt."

"He's come a long way," Garrus said. "It would be really impressive if the clan leader picked him."

"I'm going to go see how some of the others are doing," Shepard said. "Garrus…we'll talk later."

"Right."

Shepard left. Miranda, Garrus, and Zaeed remained standing together.

"So what are you and the Commander going to talk about later?" Miranda asked Garrus.

"Mm…nothing."

"You don't gotta hide it," Zaeed laughed. "Everyone knows. She's only asking to get you to admit it."

"Look, it's not…what everyone thinks. We really are just going to talk. About…the possibility, of…something."

"Why wait?" Zaeed asked. "Just do it tonight. If that IFF gets installed, we could be in Collector space this time tomorrow. There may not even be another night after that."

"I guess that's…one way of seeing it," Garrus said slowly.

"I know what I'm doing tonight, is all I'm saying," Zaeed said.

"Don't look at me," Miranda said, frowning.

"I wasn't. But you should find someone for yourself too."

"I don't think so."

"Well think about it more. I'll see you lot in the morning."

Zaeed walked off.

"He really is a strange man," Miranda said.

"Do you think…maybe he's right?" Garrus asked hesitantly.

There was a pause. "I don't know," Miranda said quietly.

"Huh. Well…I'll talk to you later, Miranda."

* * *

><p>With the <em>Normandy<em> crew out of the tournament, Vash easily took the top spot for the females. Wrex, annoyed by Shepard's decision, finally managed to convince her to let Zaeed fight in his krant for the final battle. The only major contest left was between Grunt and Wratog, to determine which one would mate with Uta.

Before the fight, Grunt was surprised to be approached by Uta herself. "I have been watching your progress."

"I am the best warrior here."

Uta laughed. "Such audacity…it becomes you very well. You may strike fear and doubt into the heart of your opponent."

"It isn't a strategy. It is fact."

"That remains to be seen."

"Why are you here?"

There was a pause; then, unexpectedly, Uta reached out a gloved hand and gently stroked the side of Grunt's face. "I want you, Urdnot Grunt," she whispered.

"Then you must wait until after I win. Those are the rules."

Uta retracted her hand. "Of course…of course. I will see you after the contest. Oh…and Grunt?"

"Yes?"

"Wratog seems to have a slight limp on his left side. I think he may have suffered a foot injury in the last battle."

"I already noticed."

"Of course you did. Fight with honor, Urdnot Grunt. I will be waiting."

Grunt returned to the arena, where Wrex clapped him on the back. "You're up next. You ready for this?"

"Yes."

"Good. Think of the prize waiting for you if you secure victory."

"Hmmm."

"What was that?"

"Nothing."

Grunt and Wratog took to the arena; the crowd seemed divided between them, but a surprising number of _Normandy_ crew had gathered to cheer on Grunt's name. Neither Grunt nor Wratog was fazed by the crowd; they stood focused on one another, ready for the battle to start.

Wratog had fought with staffs in most of the previous battles, but Grunt opted for hand-to-hand combat in this one. What it turned into was a violent wrestling match; Wratog fell down early and Grunt pounced on him without hesitation. Rolling around and smacking each other, the fight looked more like the sort of thing one would see in the varren pit by the _Normandy_ landing site. And the crowd absolutely loved it.

Because of the style of their wrestling match, the fight went on much longer than most other hand-to-hand battles. Grunt's more colorful appearance distinguished him from Wratog, but it was difficult to tell who was dealing more damage. Eventually, after several minutes of roaring and pounding, Grunt drove Wratog to the edge and barely forced his arm past the limit line.

"Urdnot Grunt is the winner!" the arena judge shouted; Grunt stood and roared to the crowd, throwing his fists up into the air and seeming happy for the first time all day. The crowd roared back.

"Well done!" Wrex exclaimed, rushing up to him. "That was a well-deserved victory."

"Yes," Grunt said, still catching his breath. "I feel…I…I can't describe it."

"Proud?"

"No…Powerful. Like the most powerful krogan in the galaxy."

Wrex laughed. "Bring that confidence with you to Uta's bed."

Grunt hesitated. "That…is more difficult."

"It's all right to be nervous. But you'll do fine. You're special, Grunt."

"I'm different."

"That isn't a bad thing."

"Isn't it? Other krogan either like me because I am different, or hate me because I am different. I'm not treated like the others."

"You just won the tournament. Today you deserve to be treated like a champion. And tonight, I'm sure Uta will treat you as such. We will fight together in our krant tomorrow morning, after everyone has recovered."

Uta walked over to them. "I knew you would win," she said.

"I'll leave you two alone," Wrex said with a smile, walking away.

"I…I am injured," Grunt said nervously to her. "I need time."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes…I…I just need a couple of hours. To be ready."

"All right. Take all the time you need. I will be waiting."


End file.
